I'll Be Your Levy
by TheLastPerformance
Summary: A continuation of the book "Fangirl" written by Rainbow Rowell. Updated weekly. Cath and Levi spend the summer on his family's ranch. She's scared of making a bad impression in front of his family, meeting his friends, and... Hey is that an email from Nick? Plus so much more. There's sexual themes and other shenanigans, so be wary if you're not into that kind of thing.
1. Chapter 1: I Miss You Babe

_**I do not own these characters, I'm just borrowing them from Rainbow Rowell's novel Fangirl. All the titles I am using are song lyrics by people who are not me, and I will give them their own subsection to give them proper credit.**_

_I didn't really want the book to end so I decided not to let it. I don't intend to commit to it even half as much as Cath did to Carry On, Simon but I do plan on updating at least a minimum of once a week, and no chapter should be less than 1000 words... I've never actually posted any fanfiction publicly before so I genuinely hope you all like it. I wanted it to feel canon as I could so it felt more like a continuation, but hey, I am neither perfect nor am I Rainbow Rowell. (But I'm pretty sure the two are synonymous)_

_Feel free to leave comments, I'll try to respond!_

_Enjoy!_

* * *

I Miss You, Babe, and I Don't Want To Miss A Thing  
(Aerosmith: I Don't Want To Miss A Thing)

It was a Monday, in the middle of June. Cath hadn't seen Levi since his sister's wedding on May 25th. He had been so busy on the ranch he hardly even got the chance to call anymore, just the occasional text, so she thought the call was an accident.

"_Cather Avery, would you do me the honor of coming to out to Arnold to spend some time with me?"_

"_Like... _stay _with you?" she coughed out her Fruit Loops, "like, with your family? On the ranch?"_

"_Yeah! Late nights playing Uno with my sisters, reading together," He sighed, obviously smiling, "stargazing in the bed of my truck, meeting my horses... _my rabbits_."  
_

_Cath giggled, "Do you really think your family would be okay with that..." She wiped her mouth off with her sleeve, "with me?"_

"_By that you mean my mother, right?"_

"_No," she began to rinse out her bowl, "well, mostly... but everyone else too. I've only met them the one time at the wedding."  
_

"_Cather," Levi said, in a jokingly-stern tone, "My family loved you. My sisters loved you. My dad loved you. My _mother _loved you."  
_

"_You really think so?"  
_

"_I know so."  
_

_Cath sighed, "For how long?"  
_

"_As long as you want."  
_

"_Levi, I wouldn't ever leave."  
_

"_Good."  
_

"_Leeeee-viiiii," Cath groaned.  
_

"_A minimum of two weeks."  
_

"_A _minimum _of two?"  
_

_He was grinning, "So, is this a yes?"  
_

"_When?"  
_

"_How about I come out Saturday and we leave Sunday?"  
_

"_Okay."  
_

"_Okay!" Levi chirped, _do people chirp?_ "I love you, Cather."  
_

"_Oka-," She paused, "I love you too, Levi. So much."_

She missed him more and more every time she replayed that conversation in her head.

It was Saturday morning, her hair was up in a towel turban and the entire room smelled like toasted coconut shampoo. Wren was beginning to stir under the covers. They ended up falling asleep in their dad's bed (he was out of town, and would be back Sunday morning) the night before talking about Levi and Jandro. How weird it was that, between the two of them, it was Cath going away to stay with a boy for the summer.

"When is he supposed to be here?" Wren asked, not bothering to open her eyes.

"He should be here around noon."

"Are you excited?"

"I feel like my stomach is going to implode." Cath moaned, plopping down onto the bed.

Her sister sat up and smiled, "Do you want help picking out an outfit?"

After an hour of sister-grooming-bonding time, Cath looked herself over in the mirror. Her hair was pulled up into a braided bun as opposed to her normal messy bun. She was wearing Levi's light blue flannel shirt (he had accidentally left it behind when he was over for their birthday) with black leggings. Wren added a brown belt and a matching pair of cowboy boots.

"You look so good, he'd be an idiot not to rip it off and have his wicked way with you." Wren giggled, and so did Cath.

"Don't be gross," She ruffled her sister's shoulder length hair. It was in an awkward 'really need a haircut' stage, but Wren had been debating whether or not she should grow it out again. _She wouldn't though, too impatient_

The girls sat in their room passing Cath's gorgeous, new laptop from their birthday back and forth collabing on a Simon/Baz future fic that they had been working on since they finished the final book. They were supposed to be giving the fanfiction world a Magicath/Wrenegade, surprise one shot. But it was well over 15,000 words long and it was too long to not post in chapters, but they didn't care, it would be their best yet. (But never better than _Carry On, Simon._)

It was almost lunchtime and the girls had decided to take a sandwich break. _This is a dad kind of break_ Cath thought, _the kind of break when the work is paused but you can't stop thinking about what to do next..._

Wren frowned, "But Baz couldn't cheat on Simon, they're adults; men, a real man would neve—"

**Ding-Dong.**

Cath ran to the door before she could stop to composed herself. She swung the door open and there was Levi, leaning (always leaning) on the frame, one hand in his hair and the other dangling loose at his side. For a second, Cath felt paralyzed like a hallucinogenic spider had bitten her, causing her to imagine the lanky, blonde, like she was Baz in one of her older fanfics. It wasn't until Levi pulled her chin up and kissed her that she snapped out of it. Cath ran her fingers through his hair and tugged at it playfully as she pressed her nose to his so their lips only just brushed when they talked.

He was smiling ear to ear, "Hello, Cather."

"Levi..." His name rode out on an exhale, "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too, Cather."

"_GOD, _you two are going to make me puke out wedding plans." Wren laughed from the living room, snapping a picture of them with the camera she had gotten for their birthday. Levi blushed, pushing his hair back with both hands before giving Cath another quick kiss.

"Oh, Wren," He took a step towards her, opening his arms inviting her in for a hug, "I missed you too."

"Aw, really?" Wren smiled and reached out to hug him. Before either of the twins knew what was going on, Levi had Wren's head in his hand and fluffed up her hair so much it made his own floppy mess look tame.

"Yeah," Levi grinned as he released her, "I did."

"Dick." Wren sneered, but she couldn't hold back from laughing. Cath was smiling too. She really liked how he treated Wren like one of his sisters, it kept her from feeling jealous.

Levi took their hands to pull them into a hug, "So what'cha guys want to do today?"

The three of them spent the day inside, except to sit outside underneath the tree in the backyard to eat dinner, playing Simon Snow Trivial Pursuit, baking cookies, and binge-watching True Blood. Levi seemed a little uncomfortable during the sex scenes, but he got really involved with the story. ("But that's Jason's best friend! Why would he do that to them?") After so many consecutive hours of trashy TV, Wren stood up to yawn.

"I'm calling it a night. Do you want dad's room or ours?"

"I thought we were staying in dad's room until he got back."

"Well, now you have company to entertain and I would hate to box-block you." Cath reached out to kick Wren in the butt, but she was already in the hallway, yelling back, "I call dad's bed!"

* * *

"Sweetheart," Levi laughed, eyes smiled shut, "I honestly don't think I'll survive a night in _this _room while you're wearing _that. _It's just too much cute for me to handle."

Cath had stepped out of the closet in a pink shirt that read "I ❤ Magicians" and a pair of worn out, black shorts that Wren had written "Kanye Dance Pants" on the butt. He was sitting on her bed already stripped down to his white t-shirt and boxers wearing the brightly colored comforter over his head like a cloak. [_Yeah, _I'm _too cute. He looks like a little kid watching a scary movie._] Cath rolled her eyes and slumped onto the bed as dramatically as she could without smiling.

"C'mere." Levi tugged at her hair, trying to loosen the updo it was in, "c'meeeere."

He kissed her on her forehead, then on her cheek, then the other, her ear, the other, her nose and then her chin. Grinning like a chesire cat, Levi leaned back onto the headboard lifting the covers for her to climb onto him. She couldn't help but smile. The last time he was in her bed was on her birthday, May 15th, and he gave her a present that wasn't appropriate for the rest of the family, but she intended to return it the next time they were alone together. When she tried to work his boxers off, Levi took her wrists in his hands and pulled her up so they were face to face.

"Woah, there little doggy," He said in an exaggerated old-western cowboy voice and laughed through his nose, "I missed you. Let me just look at you for while."

Cath frowned, trying to wriggle her hands free, "You can look at me all you want after."

"I'll fall asleep..." He whispered, still smiling, but his eyelids looked heavy, "I missed you."

She relaxed and ducked down to kiss him, "I love you, you silly boy."

His hands moved down to her lower back and played with the hem of her shirt before taking it off. Cath was having at the edge of his jaw, where she loved him the most, when he pulled his old, white shirt off. She bit his ear making him flinch and let out a giggle. Levi slid a hand under the waistband of her shorts and massaged her through the thin layer of cotton between them.

"_Jesus..." _She gasped and buried her face into his neck.

He rolled over so that he was hovering over her to get a better view and slid his hand under the elastic, right into her. His other hand worked it's way around Cath's body finding any part of her sensitive enough to make her squirm. Levi's fingers found themselves in the perfect rhythm inside of her and she began to make a sound that was the mix between a moan and "yes." He brushed his lips against the mole on her left breast, then up to her throat, waiting for another noise loud enough to feel vibration, and then up to her mouth, taking her bottom lip between his teeth and tugging gently. They kissed; they kissed until she was on the edge, until there was barely enough oxygen to stay conscious, until their wasn't enough air for her to kiss and come at the same time.

"Oh, _Levi,_" Cath was panting, too blissed out to notice the boy roll onto his side so he could watch her face, "How am I ever supposed to leave this bed now that you're here?"

He moved his hand from out of her shorts up to her navel and smiled at her sleepily, "Just remember that I can never be further than 16,000 miles away from you, which isn't very far."

"Nerd."

"You got the reference?"

"Duh."

"I love you, Cather Avery."


	2. Chapter 2: Take a Little Walk

_**I do not own these characters, I'm just borrowing them from Rainbow Rowell's novel Fangirl. All the titles I am using are song lyrics by people who are not me, and I will give them their own subsection to give them proper credit.**_

_Hello and thank you for reading! I really do appreciate it, it makes me feel like I'm doing something productive. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this week's update, it's a bit longer than the first chapter so hopefully it'll keep you satisfied until next week. (Which I am happy to say, chapter 3 is in progress already!)_

_On a side note, I'd like to apologize for the absolutely wretched formatting. It should be better from now on.  
See you next week!  
Enjoy_

* * *

Take A Little Walk In The Country With Me**  
**(S. McCreery)

Cath always knew there were roaming fields of crops and animals that ran around freely. They would alway drive through areas like that whenever they left Omaha. It never occurred to her that there were people that lived in these places. To Cath it was just No-Man's-Land, but to Levi it was neighbors and friends. Everything seemed so foreign, like it wasn't even the same planet, let alone the same state.

"Levi." Cath was watching his face as he drove.

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"Whenever you talk about your mom," - She was twiddling (she loved that word.) her thumbs - " you always say talk about how much she's going to keep an eye on us, and how she's such a stickler for rules."

"Okay?" He looked over at her with an eyebrow raised.

"Well, how did you get her to agree to have me over?"

"Oh, we had a heart-to-heart about how I'm 21 years old and can make my own fucking decisions," He laughed, "But really though, she knows you're a good girl. Nothing for her to worry about."

Cath frowned, looking down at her restless hands. [Christ, even his mother knows I'm a virgin.] She could feel nerves bubble up in her stomach like tar; heavy and dark moving up to her throat.

"We're getting really close to my house! Maybe another ten minutes." Levi reached over for her hand, and she kissed his knuckles. He pulled the truck over and turned the music down, "Cather."

"What?"

"Look at me for a minute."

She laughed, "Why?"

"God, you are so beautiful," His face was entirely at ease, like he had just woken up from a really nice nap, "I think I must be the luckiest man in the world."

Cath blushed and turned away to look out the window, "Shut up."

"I'm being serious," He reached over and pulled her chin back to look at him, "If I could keep you out here with me all the time I would without a second thought."

"Levi..." She tried to interrupt.

"Cather, I honestly don't know how to explain it, you're jus-"

"Levi!" Cath snapped, "Stop."

He frowned, "What's wrong?"

"I just... Don't want to hear that right now." She was red from her chest to her face, "You're making me nervous."

"Look, sweetheart, I just want you to know that no matter what happens out here, I love you. I don't want you to change."

"What are you talking about?" Cath could feel her heart beating even quicker, "Levi, you're making me feel really anxious."

Levi fumbled, trying hard to get his words right, before releasing a heavy sigh, "I'm just trying to say that; if my mom, or sisters, or even my dad make you feel uncomfortable about yourself... Just... Don't..." He cleared his throat and ran a hand through his hair, "I just know how hard it is to meet someone's family. I remember when I met your dad, it was terrifying. I mean, I know how it is for you to meet new people in general, I mean, not that you give a bad impression I just, I just..."

They sat together, awkwardly, trying to compose themselves while Uncle Kracker's Follow Me came onto the radio. Cath didn't know what to make of that. (What Levi had said, not the song. The song made her want to kiss him until her mouth was sore.) She had already been nervous to stay with his family and now she was entirely reconsidering. Levi kept looking over like he was going to say something, but he never did. They sat there, not talking but still hand-in-hand, until the song ended. He groaned and buried his face in his hands.

Cath unbuckled her seatbelt and scooted next to him, "Thank you, really, for trying." He looked at her and smiled a little, "Levi, you're so good. I honestly couldn't imagine anyone being as good a person as you are."

Levi kissed the top of her head and pulled her under his arm, "I love you."

* * *

The ranch was on a huge property. There was 2 barns, a chicken coop and fields full of cows and a few horses. Levi had pointed out a wooded area when they first drove up, that was apparently an apple orchard that his childhood treehouse was hiding in. There was a huge yellow house, at least 3 stories high, in the middle of everything. _[It's JUST like being on The Walking Dead when they got to the farm.]_ Cath's heart skipped a beat when the truck stopped.

"You ready to do this?" Levi was smiling from ear to ear, still holding her under his arm.

"Ready as I'll ever be." She smiled back.

He stepped out of the car and scooped Cath into his arms, twirling around until he was on the verge of falling over. They leaned against the truck trying to straighten themselves out. Levi lifted her up onto the hood and pressed his lips to hers. Cath felt like putty in his hands, as he tangled his fingers in her hair. She moved her hands to his lower back and slid them down the back of his jeans. He took a step back, grinning wider than before.

"Sorry, Cath, can't get too excited. We're about to see my family," She pouted a little, and Levi leaned in to kiss her cheek, then whispered, "But I would love to finish this up in my room tonight."

He walked to the bed of the truck to get her things. Cath was biting her bottom lip.

"Promise?" She asked, not looking back at him.

"Definitely," Levi laughed, holding all of her things, "Now, quit sittin' pretty and give me hand?"

Cath took a couple bags and followed the floppy-haired blonde through the front door. It was just as cute on the inside as on the outside. Wood floors, vintage furniture, quilted throws, pictures of their family, recent and old on every wall, there was even a big metal wood stove with a little kettle on top. _[Just like on TV...]_

"That's just for looks, we never use that thing." He said, nodding towards the kettle and walking further into the house, "This whole room is pretty much just for when we have company, actually."

"Levi? Is that you, honey?" A voice called.

"Yes, Momma!" Levi yelled back, setting Cath's things beside a couch. He nodded for Cath to follow him into the family room.

This room was much more modern, with a TV, a DVD tower, a big, brown, suede couch and coffee table. There was a big fireplace at the far end with more pictures on it, but the walls had movie posters and shelves with board games. Another door was awkwardly placed in the corner.

Four women sat on the couch, playing Monopoly. They were all so blonde and looked so much alike. Levi did too, except he shared his father's hairline. (His dad had thick, blonde hair, he just had a really intense widow's peak since he was Levi's age) There was Mary, the youngest, Abigail, she was about the same age as Cath, Shiloh, she was 23, and their mother, Marlisse, who was probably in her mid-fifties, but still absolutely beautiful. She had something about her that was stoic, maybe it was her sharp cheekbones or her judgemental looking blue eyes, but it threw Cath off every time. Marlisse looked fierce, like a Greek goddess or a lioness, until she smiled. When she smiled it was like her face transformed into the kind, happy woman you'd see on a commercial.

She smiled, "Hello, Cath! It's so good to see you again," Marlisse stood to greet them with a hug, "I'm sure you remember my other children."

"I do." Cath waved at them, shyly.

"So, how have you been?"

"Good, I've been doing a lot of reading," She bit her lip, "How have you been, Marlisse?"

"I'm doing really well. Levi hasn't stopped talking about you since the wedding, so I'm glad you're finally here." She laughed, "Maybe now we'll be able to change the subject!"

Levi blushed, "Thank you, Mother. Anyway, I'm going to take Cath up to my room-"

"Oooooh." His younger sisters teased. His mother raised an eyebrow.

"TO MY ROOM," He continued, scrunching up his nose in playful irritation, "to change and give her a tour of the ranch if you want to come with us, girls."

* * *

Levi had Cath on the bed before she had the chance to take in her surroundings. He tugged at her shirt, like he wanted permission before ripping it off. Cath, still in shock, lifted her arms above her head and parted her lips. Levi ignored her mouth and moved straight to her collarbone working his way to her breasts. He worked her bra off in a matter of seconds, admiring Cath's half-naked body for a moment before losing himself in her exposed skin again. His hands moved to her chest and she pulled his face to hers. They didn't stop until Levi started unbuttoning her jeans.

"What are you doing?" Cath was breathing hard and took one of his hands in hers.

His cheeks flushed as he tried to steady his breath, "I just got really excited all of a sudden."

"No shit." She grinned, taking his knuckle between her teeth.

"I've been thinking about you a lot lately," Levi confessed, not making eye contact but he had a cheeky smile, "In my room. Now that you're really here all I want to do is keep you up here for myself."

"God," Cath laughed and sat up. Levi was still over her, "What were you going to do to me?" She asked half-flirting, half-serious.

He kissed her again, more gently than before, and looked into her eyes, "Anything you'd let me get away with."

It was then, feeling Levi through both of their jeans, that she realized that she hadn't ever actually seen him entirely naked. He always stripped her down and touched her before she even had the chance to do the same. Levi had seen her have an orgasm, Levi had given her orgasm. He even had pictures of her only wearing her bra and panties on his phone. Cath hadn't even seen a penis in person. She was curious and he looked totally depraved.

"I'd let you get away with anything right now." Cath leaned in to kiss him.

Levi hummed, gratefully, leaning into it, but only for a second, "I can't. Not right now."

She scoffed, "Why not?"

"Because my family is downstairs waiting for us to make another appearance soon." He reached to the ground and handed her her bra.

"Okay." She frowned and fixed it back on.

Levi fidgeted a little, still hovering over her, still very riled up, "I swear, I'm not doing this to tease you. It kind of hurts just leaving him up like that."

"Him?" Cath giggled.

"Don't make fun of me, Cather." He leaned her against the headboard and pressing himself into her thigh, "One day I'm going to have you so hot you'll be begging for me to take you, and we just won't be interested."

"Jesus, Levi, when did you get so aggressive?"

He stood up abruptly and started adjusting himself, "When I realized it turns you on."

Cath went for her bags and pulled out a more weather appropriate outfit. As she slipped out of her pants, she noticed Levi was sitting on the bed again, watching with a big smile. He looked more like the Levi she was used to.

"Where is the restroom?"

"Sorry, do you want me to stop looking?"

"It's nothing you haven't seen before, it's just that…" She blushed and looked at the floor.

"You don't have to be embarrassed, sweetheart. I understand." He giggled, "It's the door directly across from this one."

"Thank you."

Cath got herself cleaned up and changed. She stopped in front of the mirror looking at her face, giving herself time for an inner monologue. _I was about to have sex with Levi. Sort of. I mean, I would have done it. Jesus, where did normal Cath go? I never would have let Abel do that. Not that he was that spontaneous anyways… but I went along with it. Fuck, I was disappointed even. How does that even happen? Maybe I'm ovulating… I have been pretty hyped up since he came over to get me. Even before then, because even the Simon fic we're working on has been more sexual than usual. I've never wanted to start my period so bad before in my life. God._ Cath groaned.

"Sweetheart, are you alright?" Levi asked.

"I'm fine."

"Come out, I want to show you something."

When Cath opened the door, Levi was standing in front of her holding out a bouquet of fluff. He stepped in the bathroom and gave her one of the puffs. It was a baby rabbit, a little, reddish cottonball no bigger than her hand. Levi was nuzzling all the others with his nose.

"Aren't they just the cutest?" He asked, putting all but the one Cath was holding into a little cardboard box, "My momma rabbit just had them about a month ago. This litter had 8 kittens, so I'm only keeping two."

"It's so small." She kissed it between its ears.

"Yeah, he's the runt of the litter, but he's got the prettiest coat I've ever seen," Levi brushed its fur gently back into place, "I wanted you to have him."

Her eyes shot up, "Really?"

"You don't have to take it home if you don't want to, he can stay with me," He was watching the rabbit breathing, "But I want him to be yours."

"This is the cutest gift anyone has ever given to me, I love him." She brought the puff to her face and kissed it, then reached up to kiss Levi's nose, "You're so sweet."

"What do you want to call him?"

"I think he looks like a Kanye Basilton Stewart," Cath paused, "But we can just call him 'Baz' for short."

"Do you really like him?"

"Duh."

Levi was beaming.

* * *

Cath was still holding Baz when they reached one of the buildings. Mary was walking next to her talking about the rabbit Levi had given her when she turned eight. Apparently it had been the biggest kit in the litter and it was a pretty deal to her. She still had it. Abigail was on the other side of her brother, peeking over to chime in about competitions they had entered every so often. Levi had his arm around Cath's waist with a really proud looking smile on his face.

"This is the stable; it's where the horses stay when they're not out getting exercise and other shenanigans." He announced as they walked through.

"I think Lady is still in here." Abigail smiled, "She's due any day now."

"You have a pregnant horse, too?" Cath asked, holding Baz closer to her chest.

"Well, someone wanted to breed Lady with their sire for his daughter's birthday. My mom let me keep the money because Lady's my horse." She pulled out her phone to show Cath the picture of the stallion, "Pretty isn't he? I'm going to be sad to see the baby leave, it's going to be a beautiful, blonde foal."

"It'll fit right in with this family." Cath said, blushing behind Levi's arm.

The sisters looked at their brother and grinned, giving him the thumbs up.

"We love her." Mary pat his shoulder, "Seriously."

"I expect a marriage proposal before the end of your senior year, Levi Pickering." Abigail poked at his stomach.

"Oh, hush up," Levi ran a hand through his hair, "You can't try to pair me off with every person with two X chromosomes that comes onto the property."

"That was one other time, and you weren't even home for it." Mary argued, "Plus Cath is super hot and smarter than you. You'd be a dummy to let her walk away."

Cath did walk away, but only to look into a stall. She jumped back when a head popped out to greet her with a whinnie.

"Oh!" Abigail walked over to the horse, "This is Lady, I think she wants to taste your rabbit."

Cath stared at the massive animal, "I don't think I've ever been this close to a full grown horse before."

"Don't worry, Lady is a sweetie pie," She scratched behind Lady's ear, "If you let her smell your hand, she'll let you pet her too."

She did, "Hello, beautiful."

"We can take you out riding sometime." Levi offered, walking away from his youngest sister, who tailed right behind him.

"I'd be too afraid to." Cath blushed.

"You could ride on Paul with me, I wouldn't let you fall," He pulled her against him so they were both facing Lady, "He's a really well mannered horse, he's really polite to women."

"Shut up?"

"Honestly! He loves my sisters so much, when they try to ride him he refuses to trot any faster than 10 miles per hour." Levi was speaking low in his chest voice. She could feel every word just as clearly as she could hear it.

"Paul likes me the best though." Mary laughed, "Because we go together. I think he feels it."

"You go together?" Cath tilted her head.

"Peter, Paul and Mary," Levi chimed in, "I didn't even realized until well after the year that I got him. I was trying to name him after Paul McCartney."

"It would have been cuter if they had named Levi after grandpa though. His name was almost Peter, too," Abigail smiled at Cath, "But Peter Pickering Stewart sounded too much like a fairytale character."

The group stood there and discussed the horses for awhile, then moved from the stables to the rabbit hatch to put Baz away, to the barn for the cows. Levi had Cath try raw milk for the first time, explaining that it was safe because their cows were really healthy and free-range, not like the industrial cows' milk from the stores that needs to be pasteurized to keep people from getting salmonella. Mary pointed out that none of them had ever gotten sick from it before, so it couldn't be that bad. After the cows they moved on to see the chickens. Those were Mary's specialty. She told Cath all about differentiating between fertilized egg and eggs good for eating, when to separate the rooster from the hens and why it's better to only have one rooster. The three of them all agreed that desserts with milk and eggs from the ranch were much better than any other kind of dessert. Levi made her promise that she would make him an omelette from the fresh eggs and he would make her a pie using local ingredients.

They went back inside the house around 6 just in time for dinner. Everyone was excited to have Cath sitting at the table for the first time, even Delilah and her husband came over for dinner. (It was the first meal they had been home for since the wedding) Levi held her hand whenever she got nervous, and talked her up the whole way through. By the end of the night Cath felt herself loosen up around them.

After everyone was in bed, and Levi had himself curled around her, Cath felt like the next couple weeks were going to be smoother than she had hoped. 

_**Edit: **Thanks to comments from the people (okay, _a_ person) I was able to fix Levi's last name. I guess his last name was Stewart! WHO KNEW? :D (Everyone but me? My b...) I also realized because of that, that I didn't clarify enough that Pickering was intended to be his middle name. (The name choice is kind of an inside joke)  
__Anyways, I just wanted to say that feedback is really something that I would love. I want to sweep up any major flaws under the rug and pretend like they never happened.  
__Thank you,  
Cecilia_


	3. Chapter 3: More Than I Could

_Hey! Hope you enjoy this chapter. John is an original character who might get peppered in every so often. I felt like Levi, being as social as he is, would have more friends than just Reagan and his sisters. I tried to throw in some English lit. references because Cath is an English major and John is supposed to be a theater major. I think he's a cutie, like Roy G. Biv and Kip Kaizer from Monsterkind put together. (Monsterkind is Enenkay's web comic, it's super amazing.)  
Still working on the formatting by the way. It's driving me up the wall..._

_GISHWHES is this week so, if you're involved with that, I hope you're week is abnosome!_

See you next week!  
Cecilia

* * *

More Than I Could Ever Promise

(Ingrid Michaelson: The Way I Am)

"Whose turn is it?" Cath exhaled hard, trying to catch her breath.

They were playing _Would You Rather. _Levi had said something that made her laugh so hard she had to run to the bathroom in order to not wet herself. She crawled back onto the bed and nuzzled into Levi's chest next to Baz, who was trying to get comfortable on his bare skin. He had been so busy since they got to the ranch, they hadn't spent much time alone together. Cath kissed his collarbone and left her head on his shoulder.

"It's your turn." Levi said.

"Okay." She scratched Baz behind one of his floppy ears, "Uhm, would you rather have a bunny tail or-"

"Bunny tail." He interrupted, "Don't even need to hear the second one. I'd be so cute."

Cath giggled, "Okay, go."

"Would you rather live a rich and healthy life here or live a very average life in the world of the Mages?"

"Mages. Easy." She smiled, "Would you rather be me or be a woman?"

"Are you trying to tell me you're not a woman?" He raised an eyebrow.

"No, like would you rather be me or the woman version of yourself?

"Well, if I were you, would you be me?"

"Sure."

"And if I was girl me would you be boy you"

"No, I'd still be me."

He bit his bottom lip and his voice lowered to a whispered, "Would you still love me if I were a girl?"

"Quit asking questions, you're making this less fun." Cath pushed him playfully.

"Fine..." Levi kissed her, "But would you?"

"I'd like to think so..."- She nudged him again- "Now go."

"I'd rather be a woman."

"Why?"

"Well for one, I hear women have better orgasms." He twirled her hair around his finger and kissed her forehead, "And two, because I wouldn't be able to look at you

the same way if I _was_ you."

Cath took Baz, "Stop being cute, this game is serious business."

Levi sat up and lifted her shirt, leaning in to kiss around her bellybutton. She wiggled under his tongue as he licked her down to the elastic of her panties, snapping it with his teeth. If she hadn't been holding the little rabbit against her chest he'd have tried to take off her shirt. He straddled her hips and took her hands in his. Cath wanted to kiss him everywhere.

"You're so beautiful." His eyes were scanning her face, down to the rabbit and back up.

"God, quit saying that." She frowned.

"Why, does it embarrass you?"

"Yes."

Levi scrunched up his face, and leaned over the edge of the bed, "Blegh, you're so grody. I can't even stand to look at you." He was pretending to gag, "I don't know how I ever fell in love with a troll like you!"

When their lips met again Levi was on his side pulling Cath into his arms so that Baz slid gently between them. Cath would have stayed in bed that way for the rest of the night if he hadn't perked up all of a .sudden. His grin was at 100% and his eyes got that sparkle in them.

"Cather Avery, the night is young, and so are we." He gave a little dance not letting her go.

Cath eyed him, "Levi, it's 10."

"Duh, Captain Curfew! Let's go out." Still wiggle-dancing.

"Levi, it's a Thursday." She insisted.

"Let's go to the karaoke bar!" He was trying to get Cath dancing.

"Levi, I can't get in, I'm 19."

"That's okay, it's more of a club anyway. It's 18 and over." Baz woke up.

"Levi, I don't want to go."

He stopped dancing, and lowered his grin to a 65% smile, "You can meet John."

* * *

John is Levi's favorite _guy_. They met in kindergarten and have been partners in crime ever since. Cath had never met John before, but he came up as "my really tall friend, John" every so often when Levi would tell her stories about different shenanigans he's gotten into. What Levi failed to mention is how puppy-dog John looked. It took her by surprise.

His dark freckles were sprinkled liberally across his cheeks and his brown hair flopped over in a mess that looked like a baby duck fell asleep on his head, little ducktail included. He had big, brown eyes with long, droopy lashes, but he wore wire-rimmed glasses that just intensified the whole goofy look. When he smiled at them as they walked into the musty, beer-scented building, she noticed that he bites his lower lip with his two front teeth. If he had shaved the 5 o'clock shadow, he might have looked like a high school freshman. John was adorable.

"Levi, my love! You have returned to our place of sacred union!" He shouted from his table holding his arms out like he were going to quote Hamlet's fourth soliloquy.

Levi ran to him, "Jonathan, my pearl, not only have have I returned to you, but I come bearing a woman as a sacrifice to our love."

"She's beautiful. But, dear Levi, she is..." John paused, "She is _really _cute. Good job, buddy."

"Thank you." She blushed, "I'm Cath."

"I know! I've heard a lot about you. Actually, I've seen a lot of pictures of you, but you're much cuter in person," He smiled abashedly and extended a hand, "I'm John."

They sat around a table getting acquainted. John worked/lived on a farm, his family primarily grew organic berries, that was not too far from Levi's house. When they were little boys they used to play in Levi's apple orchard treehouse to hide away from their after school chores. They were proud father's of a bag of flour in their Home Ec class, joined drama club to meet girls, and at one point they even tried hitchhiking to New York after their senior year with no success (to even leave town). Cath rested her head on Levi as she listened to their stories. It felt nice when he laughed because she could feel it ring through his whole body.

"Cath, do you do karaoke?" John asked.

"God, no." She laughed, scrunching her nose.

"Well, I do." He said, "In fact, I took the liberty of signing myself up before you two even got here."

"Okay."

"Better than okay."

John stood up when the last song ended and walked to the mic. Cath, anticipating secondhand embarrassment, buried her face into Levi's cardigan. He gave her a quick kiss on the forehead. Then the music began to play, and they both recognized it immediately, though anyone who's listened to the radio within the last 13 years would recognize that intro.

"_ALL THE SMALL THINGS..." _John sang out, maybe a half-step offkey.

"He really likes you, Cather." Levi pulled her into his lap so they could see John on stage.

"Yeah?" She smiled.

"Definitely, he's usually really shy and calm, especially around strangers."

"I would have never guessed." Cath watched him performing a little more attentively.

"Oh, he just really likes karaoke," He rested his chin on the top of her head, "And acting."

"_NA NA NA NA NA NANANANANA NA NA NA NA NA NANANANA!" _John's hips and downy hair got into the action.

Levi giggled, "What do you think?"

"I like him, he's cute."

"Yeah, me too."

They sat together, wooing and clapping until the song was over. Instead of walking back to the table, John went to the bar and came back with a tall glass of beer. He took a long drink, and Cath watched his adam's apple bob.

"So," He said, setting the glass down, "Do you sing, Cath?"

"God, I couldn't go up there even if I wanted to." She rolled her eyes.

"Whyever not?"

"Because I'm a terrible singer."

"Karaoke _means _bad singing." John smiled, teeth sinking into his lip.

"Cather doesn't sing." Levi said matter-of-factly, "She raps."

"Oh my god." Cath groaned.

"You do?" He perked up.

"I do not."

"She does! To Kanye West nonetheless." Levi pulled her hair gently.

"Well, let's hear it then!"

"No," She frowned, "What do I gain from it?"

John was quiet for a minute, twirling a finger in his little ducktail. She moved back to her own seat, trying not to make him feel like the third wheel. Levi kept his arm around her shoulders though, like he was trying to show everyone that they were together. (Not in a jealous way, but in a peacocking kind of way.)

"Hmm," John scratched his chin, "Did Levi tell you we were in a play together?"

"_No! _What play?"

"Pride and Prejudice," He was smiling again, "We were Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley."

"I was Bingley." Levi chimed in.

Cath giggled, " That's so cute, that's my favorite Jane Austen book."

"If you go up and do a Kanye song, I'll have you over to watch a recording of us."

"Really?" She looked at Levi who just smiled and shrugged, "Fine, let's do it."

As soon as her turn was up Cath regretted the deal. No amount of cute, little Levi was worth publically humiliating herself, but it was too late to drop out though. John signed her up to do _Stronger_ because "that song is too fun for even the biggest introverts to look like a sad, little muppet." She was starting to think Levi didn't know what shy meant.

The music started and Cath felt her stomach drop to her knees. Lyrics were coming on screen, not out of her mouth. She was shaking and in the verge of tears, but she didn't want to go back on the deal and look like a total loser so she sang along. People were even trying to cheer her on.

"_Cause I can't wait much longer. I know I got to be right now' cause I can't get much wronger. Man I've been waitin' all night now, that's how long I've been on you." _It all came out in mumbles.

Cath spun around when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Levi was bouncing on his heels and rapping along. His smile was the best thing Cath had ever seen and they started dancing. He ran a hand through his hair and pulled her rubberband letting hers fall over her shoulders.

"_Heard they'd do anything for a Klondike. Well, I'd do anything for a blonde-dyke. And she'll do anything for the limelight."_

Levi made everything feel okay. It was like singing in her room with Wren or reading out loud to him. It was easy; it was nothing. When the song ended, the rest of the bar crashed over them with whistles and clapping. Cath threw her hands over his shoulders.

"It seemed like an emergency." He mumbled as his lips crashed onto hers.

She was completely in love with him.

* * *

By the time they got back home it was 3 in the morning. Cath must've fallen asleep in the car because when she woke up she was on the bed, not wearing pants. Levi walked into the room only wearing a pair of grey boxer briefs. He smiled sleepily and fell into bed next to her.

"You're the most amazing person I have ever met in my entire life." Cath kissed his nose and she could feel his cheeks get warm.

"I'm just your friendly neighborhood spider, I'm nothing too special." He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a little squeeze.

"Levi, you do so much for me, you're so good to me." She hid her face in his neck, "I just feel like I won't ever be able to thank you enough for everything you do." Her  
body felt like shutting down, so the words came out slowly, "You're so good. I love you so much, Levi, sometimes I don't know what to do."

"Cather Avery, I love you too." He switched the lamp off and twisted his fingers in her hair, "You're all I think about anymore."

"Me too."

"I don't know how I'm going to go back to waking up every morning without you." Levi yawned, "Or going to bed without you. _Especially_going to bed without you."

They were tired, but neither of them could fall asleep. Cath told him a story about the time she and Wren had watched _Nightmare on Elm Street _when they were little girls. They were 7 years old and their mom told them that they were old enough to watch it. After that Cath was afraid to sleep for a month. Levi told her a story about his first time watching _The Sixth Sense _when he was 11. He and John convinced Delilah to let them watch it with her one night. To this day, if he puts too much thought into it, he's still afraid of dying and not knowing. Of being dead and pretending like everything was still okay, never looking out for help or worse having to scare the shit out of another kid just to move on.

"Is that your biggest fear?" Cath asked.

Levi had to think about it for a minute, "It's up there, but I don't think that it's my _biggest _fear."

"So what is your biggest fear?"

"I've always been scared of losing people." He sighed, "What are you afraid of?"

"Being left behind." Cath was teary-eyed, but she couldn't tell if she was sad or exhausted.

"Well, I'll be around as long as you want me." Levi held her hand.

"What about when you don't want me?"

"I'll love you as long as you love me." He said it like they were making a deal.

She snorted, "You're such a cheeseball."

"Honestly," His mouth was resting on her forehead, she could feel him smile, "If you want me as long as I want you, and I want you as long as you want me, then it  
won't ever stop because neither one of will be able to stop."

"You're confusing." Cath frowned.

"Then go to sleep, sweetheart." Levi pulled the quilt over their heads to block the dim light coming through the window.

"Okay."


	4. Chapter 4: We Felt So Far Away

_SEXUAL WARNING: If you're not interested in reading about Cath and Levi doing some heavy petting, then skip to the page split. It's kind of grody so I won't be offended (or even know) if you just scroll right past it._

_Anyways, I hope you had a nice week, especially you GISHWHES participants. It was a very busy week for me so I'm sorry this update is a bit short. Next week should be easier to really crack down and get a few thousand more words down! :)_

_Also:_  
_Sorry! I know I'm late (on our one month, to add insult to injury), but to be fair I wasn't home all day! (Family in town)_

_Hope you enjoy,_

_Cecilia_

* * *

We Felt So Far Away, But We Were Still In Town

(Jack Johnson: Do You Remember)

"Sweetheart, I have to get up." Levi murmured into Cath's hair.

"Just five more minutes."

"I can't," He brushed her hair out of her face and kissed her forehead.

She looked up at him, "Stay with me."

"Cather-"

"Please?"

He sat up and sighed, "I'm sorry, Cather. I can't."

"Fine." Cath rolled over to face the dresser, then pulled the quilt over her face. _Fuck you and your stupid vintage furnishings._

"Oh, come on, Cath. Don't be like that," He leaned over her, "Cath, I love you."

"Go away, I'm sleeping."

"I loooove you," She tried to elbow him, "Cather, I love, love, loooooooove you!" Levi was sitting on her thigh, "I'm not going away until you say it back!" He laughed as he pulled the covers away from her.

"But I don't _want_ you to go yet. Please."

He tugged at a piece her hair, "Okay, but Cather, a lot can happen in five minutes."

Cath giggled as he nibbled at her ear, but pushed his hand away as he began to pull off her panties. She wanted to touch him for a change. Her eyes shifted to his grey briefs: he was already hard. Levi groaned as her hand slid down his happy trail under the elastic. Everything Cath knew about penises she learned from health class, fanfiction and Wren, which was more than she cared to admit, but still felt a little jolt of surprise at how warm and not throbbing or sticky he was.

"Cath, wait." He sat up and Cath pulled away, shoving her hands under her legs, "Let's take these off first," Levi took off his briefs then pulled off her shirt leaving her only in pink panties.

_You got this Cath. It's just a penis, you know what to do- fuck, I need lotion, don't I? Where would he keep that? In the side-table drawer?_ She pulled out a bottle. _How much do I need? Dammit, that seems like a lot. Better safe than sorry though. Okay, you got this, you want this, go for it._

Cath started at the base and worked her way up his shaft, giving a little twist as she got to the tip before sliding back down. Levi closed his eyes and let out a hiss. She started moving faster until his breath got shaky, then slowed the pace. As her right hand made its way up and down, the left fondled him, careful not to use too much pressure. Little beads began to form at his tip, before rolling down the length of him and mixing into the lotion. She could see Levi trying to watch her hands over her hair as she kissed him anywhere but his mouth.

Cath pulled away from his collarbone, and whispered in his ear, "Did you want to watch?"

"Oh god, _yes."_ It came out in more of a groan than she had expected.

She sat up, moving her hand a little quicker than before, and blushed. It was strange seeing herself touching him. Levi bit his lip like going so slowly was painful. Cath, feeling encouraged by his tightly pulled eyebrows and the white beads, leaned forward to run her tongue up his shaft. When she reached the head, she wrapped her mouth around it, using her lips to prevent her teeth from hurting him. (Wren had accidentally bit Jesse once and that was not an experience she wanted to share with Levi.) Her tongue swirled at the tip before taking more of him into her mouth, still using her hands.

He gasped, _"Cather."_

"Is this okay?" She hummed but didn't stop. The vibration made him moan.

"I'm gonna come." Levi muttered, repeatedly.

Cath sat up again and sped up to a much faster pace. He let out a breathy-yet-guttural groan, his fingers curled into the sheets, his eyelids fluttered, his back arched. There was a fairly impressive mess of white liquid on her hands, on the sheets and his thighs. She moved to straddle his hips and lean over his face.

_"Christ."_ He ran his fingers through his hair.

"Was that good?" Cath asked, chewing her lower lip.

"Oh, shut up." Levi leaned in to kiss her, but she pulled back.

"You don't want to do that." He raised an eyebrow, "I had your-"

"Just kiss me."

* * *

Marlisse eyed them suspiciously as they came downstairs, both freshly showered. They missed breakfast with his family by a couple hours, and his mother was shooting daggers. Levi had his arm around Cath's waist guiding her to the kitchen.

"God, did you see your mother's face?" Cath's voice dropped to whisper.

"She's fine. I told her before you even got here, we wouldn't have sex under her roof, and technically we didn't." He said in a low voice, leaning against the counter, "Omelettes?"

She rolled her eyes, "Sorry, did I forget to wine-and-dine you beforehand?"

"I'm classy man, you can't just under all this," - His hands outlined his body- "and think it comes without a price."

"Are you sure you don't want to skip breakfast? Your head is getting a little big."

"I don't remember asking for a side of sass with this meal." He grinned.

Cath made omelettes, Levi made coffee and hash browns. They danced around each other, trying to make everything as perfect as possible without saying it outright. It wasn't long before they were at the table laughing and enjoying their meal.

"That was fun." She said, taking a sip of coffee. Even at home, he knew how to make it taste like a cup full of melted candies.

"It was like playing house." Levi touched her hand from across the table.

"With real food instead of cookies."

"And with an actual girlfriend instead of my wife slash husband John."

"Seriously?" Cath laughed.

"Yeah we'd take turns being the husband and wife. My younger sisters were usually our daughters... slash princesses." He smiled so hard his ears wiggled.

"That's so cute. We used to make my dad have tea parties with us."

"You're precious."

"Oh, shut your trap." She smiled, stuffing a big piece of omelette in her mouth. They turned out really nice, all the ingredients were really fresh.

When they finished eating, they went back into the kitchen to clean their mess. Levi blew soap bubbles into her face while she dried the dishes off. Cath wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, when they heard his mom clear her throat.

"Levi, shouldn't you be outside? The horses need grooming." Marlisse said, leaning in the doorframe.

"Sorry, we, uhm, went to bed late." Levi's cheeks turned red, but he was still smiling, "Cather, do you want to help me scrub down hor-"

"Actually," His mother interrupted, "I was hoping to spend some time with you today, Cath. If you'd like to of course."

Cath felt her stomach drop to her knees, but she tried to smile, "That would be great."

"I was thinking we could have a girl's day out." Marlisse said, "And my mother-in-law really wanted me to bring you by."

"Grandma Jeanette?" Levi bounced up, "Can I go?

"Honey, it's a _girl's_ day out," She raised an eyebrow, "Your grandmother wanted to get to know Cath better. She liked her so much at the wedding."

At Delilah's wedding, Jeanette told Cath that her eyes were "the most amazing marbles God ever made." She also told her that her hips were lovely for making great-grandchildren.

Levi pouted, "Fine, I'll get out of you ladies hair then." He leaned over to kiss Cath on the forehead, "Love you."

She blushed, "Love you, too."

He kissed the top of his mother's head on his way out, "I love you, too, Momma. Have fun today, ladies."

_Yeah, fun._


	5. Chapter 5: Now This Is A Story

_Hey there!_

This week is back on track with the length, but I didn't have internet connection so I'm posting it later at night than I meant to. This chapter is finally Cath interacting with someone who is not _Levi, but hey, his presence can't be absent. Ever. He's too fun a character._

Anyways, I hope you had a great week and I hope to see you again next Sunday!  
I genuinely thank you for reading,

_Cecilia_

* * *

Now This is a Story

(DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince: The Fresh Prince of Bel Air)

"You're not much of a chatty Cathy, are you Cath?" Barbara laughed, massaging Cath's feet.

"I guess I'm more of a listener." She blushed.

Barbara was a plump woman in her late 50s with rosy cheeks and curly red hair. She owned the beauty parlor in town and she was good friends with Marlisse, who was in the seat next to Cath's. They were getting their nails done.

"Cath's a shy girl. She doesn't leave the room unless Levi's right at her side." Marlisse said, "I was surprised I got her out of the house today."

"Oh, honey, you're Levi is such a gentleman. I can't believe he's going to be a senior this year. They grow up so fast." Barbara cooed, "What are you going to be this year, Cath?"

"I'm going into my sophomore year." She said, "I'm majoring in English."

"Ooh, he got himself a bookworm." The ginger grinned, "Is he reading now?"

"I don't think so, he's still pretty attached to his audiobooks." Marlisse shrugged.

"What a shame. He'd be perfect if he could read," She laughed, "And if he didn't have his father's hairline."

The older women were giggling at that, but Cath didn't think it was funny. She folded her arms and frowned.

"Levi can read just fine. He has a hard time focusing on books, but he is not illiterate." Cath said, defensively, "And _I_ like his hair."

Marlisse smiled, "We're just teasing. People come here to relax and unload. Being a mother of five is a hard life, there's no harm in talking a little dirt."

She clenched her jaw, "He'd be really hurt if he heard you say that."

"Are you going to tell him that I said that?"

"Of course not."

"Then there's nothing to worry about. You'll understand when you're a mother someday." She lectured, "Sometimes you just need to stop pretending your kids are perfect. It takes a lot of energy."

Cath rolled her eyes, "It must, if that's how you feel about someone as good a person as your son."

"So, how about those cookies at the party the other night!" Barbara segued into a less serious conversation.

Things got less tense as they sat down for a late lunch. It was a much calmer environment which Cath could really appreciate. They went to a little diner around the corner from of the parlor, and it reminded her of the one Rose from _Dogfight _worked at.

"Have you been enjoying your stay out here? I don't see much of you." Marlisse asked as the waitress walked away with their orders.

"I like it," She shrugged, "But Levi is always so tired by the time we see each other, we just go right to sleep."

"I think he's up to something. He's a hard worker but I'm honestly surprised that he hasn't been trying to weasel his way out of working just to spend time with you." Marlisse said, looking over her freshly-painted, baby blue nails. They matched her eyes, "You don't have to stay in that room all day, by the way. I can't imagine there's much to do up there."

Cath just smiled.

The whole family was usually busy, so the house stayed pretty quiet. She stayed upstairs with Little Baz binge-watching Levi's DVD collection, e-mailing Wren and working on a new fic. Every so often one of his sisters would take a break and hang around with her for a while, but Levi never seemed to stop working. It wasn't much different than being at home, except on the ranch she got to litter box train a rabbit and cuddle with her boyfriend at night.

"Your smile is so lovely," Marlisse touched Cath's hand, "It's like your entire face transforms."

"I've never been a smiley person, my sister is though." Her face went flat.

"You're always smiling around Levi."

"He's always smiling," Cath spun her straw in her glass, "It's contagious."

Their food came out just in time to drop the subject. The waitress chatted with Levi's mom for a few minutes about their daughters before walking away. It was such a small town that everyone knew one another. It made Cath uncomfortable.

"Hey Mrs. Stewart." A timid voice said as the door opened. Marlisse waved, "Hey- Oh! Hey Cath." It was John.

_Way too small._

"Hi." Cath said in a very dull voice.

"You two have met?"

"Yep, last night. We all went to karaoke." John bit his lower lip and shifted his weight from foot to foot.

"Oh, wonderful," Marlisse grinned, "Is your aunt and uncle back in town yet?"

"No, they left me to fend for myself." He laughed, "I'm actually a little disappointed, but they'll be back next weekend."

"Would you like to come over for dinner tonight, so you won't have to be alone?"

John looked at Cath with a little smile, "You already have company, you don't have to take me in too."

"I insist."

"Well, alrighty then, I'll see you tonight." He fidgeted for a moment, "I'll get out of you ladies hair for now."

They watched him walk away to a table by himself. Cath almost offered him a seat with them. Almost. He was much less excitable than the night before.

"So, tell me about your twin." Marlisse finally spoke again after they turned back to their meals.

Cath told her about Wren and her dad. How her mom left when she was 7 and how it changed them all as a family. She was careful not to get into detail though, she saw first hand how much the women here seem to like rumors. It still peeved her off that she would let someone talk about her son like that. (The fact that she tried justifying made it even worse.) They made small talk about school and their various interests. Dipping their toes in to test the water.

She wanted to text Levi, but didn't want to be rude, so she kept her phone put away. _This could be going worse, Cath. She could have hated you from _the start.

* * *

Levi's grandmother was a very eccentric woman who did not act like she was an 85-year old living in a senior assisted living facility. She was tiny with wispy, blonde (but mostly grey) hair that she wore in a braid down her back. Cath could tell immediately after walking into her room that there was tension between Marlisse and her mother-in-law.

"Oh hello, dear! I'm so glad you came to see my old bones!" Jeanette stood up to greet them, "And Marlisse, you're looking far less aggressive today."

"It's nice to see you too, Jeanne..." She frowned.

"Hello," Cath waved.

"Oh, please take a seat," Jeanette waved toward the couch, "Would either of you like a drink? Apple juice, White Russian, coffee?"

"What's a White Russian?"

"It's vodka, _Kahlua_ and cream." Jeanette winked, "I'm only joking."

"We'll just have water, thank you." Marlisse sat with her hands sitting restlessly in her lap.

"Well, fine then," She poured a glass of ice water into two cups, "So, Cath, Levi tells me so much about you! I've been wanting to talk to you alone for quite awhile... Talk to me!"

"Uhm, I'm 19, I'm an English majo-"

"I meant things Levi hasn't told me! Anything that boy does that bothers you, or maybe things you wish he did more often. Anything."

"Oh. I guess it would be nice if we got to spend more time together." Cath was blushing, but kept her composure.

"Nothing else?"

"No, we're really happy together." She forced a smile.

"How sweet, you two are honeymoon phasing."

"Honeymoon phasing?"

"You know, when a couple falls in love and they're super gooey? That the honeymoon phase," Jeanette explained, "You can't find a flaw in one another, every moment away from each other feels like an eternity, and the bed is never boring."

"We don't- I mean I've never-" Cath stared desperately at Levi's mother, "I swear, we wouldn't do-"

"Jeanne, do you really think that's appropriate?" Marlisse frowned.

"It's young love, Marlisse. You were young and in love once too."

"I wasn't sleeping around when I before I was married."

"I never said you were, but you did marry _my_ son, and I know that he's never been one to go slo-"

"What was Levi like when he was younger?" Cath blurted out, trying hard to change the subject, "When he met my grandma she told him all kinds of embarrassing stories. I figure should ask too."

Both of the older women were staring at her, not quite ready to stop their argument. She knew Marlisse well enough to know that she was a strict Catholic woman, but getting to know Jeanette, it made her wonder how her and Levi's father ended up together. They came from very different lives. Cath didn't really know Levi's father though, he was on a fishing trip with his brother-in-laws and wouldn't be back until Wednesday. She was a little afraid of what to expect.

Things did get better once they started telling her stories though. Jeanette talked about different Halloween costumes he's had. His mother told her about his first crush in the second grade and how he asked her to be his girlfriend on Valentine's Day.

"He had John give her a card that said 'i think your beutifull, luv your secret amirir' and then met her outside on the playground with a bouquet of tiny daisies and dandelions and a bag of Skittles. He even wore his Sunday clothes, it was the cutest thing." Marlisse had her hand over her heart and stifled a laugh, "But she told him 'no, you have cooties' and took his Skittles."

"No way! That's so sad, poor baby." Cath said, laughing hard.

"He cried for two days, it was _so_ sad, but to be honest his father and I had the hardest time keeping a straight face. It was so funny."

They sat there for two hour filling her head with little Levi stories. Jeanette gave her a stack of pictures of him that she had doubles of to take home. She said she had a really good feeling about their relationship, so she knew the pictures were in safe hands. The senior home was an hour out of Arnold, but Cath felt much more comfortable with Marlisse after they loosened up around each other. She was glad she went out with her.

* * *

"Oh, gosh. There's John's truck. I'm sure the house is a mess and my children are whining about being starved half to death." Marlisse rolled her eyes,

"A mother's work is never done..."

As they got closer to they noticed everyone outside playing a game. Levi was on one foot smacking Shiloh on the arm when he noticed them pulling up. His face lit up as he ran up to the cab.

"Mom and Cather, all in one piece!" He yanked the driver's side door open and fell onto their laps, "So, how was your day out?"

"It was nice." Cath brushed his hair out of his eyes. He needed a haircut.

"It would have been better if your grandmother wasn't a total headcase." Marlisse frowned at her son's legs over hers.

"Did you seriously fight with Grandma in front of her?" His eyes went wide and his grin vanished.

"Let me just say that-" She started.

"Christ, Mother, you couldn't play nice for one day?"

"She started it," She finished, "Cath will have my back on this one. She was uncomfortable. too. _And _I really wish you wouldn't use the Lord's name in vain."

"That doesn't count," Levi had a cheeky smile, "Cather is always uncomfortable."

"Shut up." Cath gave a little shove.

"But wait there's more," He stuck his tongue out, and wiggled out of the cab, "Congratulations, ladies, we cooked dinner!"

It was a really cute dinner, too. It was outside on the picnic tables sitting over little torches to keep it warm. Each kid, John included, made something. Shiloh made chicken, Abigail made a potato salad, Mary grilled corn on the cob, John made lemonade, and Levi baked an apple pie. Marlisse pulled them all into a big hug and kissed the tops of their heads. She looked grateful and very proud of her children (& John). Levi pulled Cath aside and pressed his lips on her forehead, leaving his nose in her hair.

"You okay?" His hands were on her hips, rocking them back and forth.

"Not at first," She admitted, "But it got easier."

"Did you miss me?"

"I always miss you."

"I have a surprise for you tonight." He grinned.

"What is it?"

"A surprise."


	6. Chapter 6: Don't Hurt My Pride

_Hello again! I really like this chapter, so I hope you like it too. There's a lot of crying, but don't worry, I think you're gonna dig it! There's just so many feels to be felt in this one. _

_Anyway, like always I really do appreciate you reading my first ever public fic. I don't know if I can really say "thank you" enough, this is a big deal for me, especially with the positive feedback. Your reviews are so much more than welcome. Feel free to message me privately too, even if it's totally unrelated._

_Honestly, thank you so much for reading,_  
_Cecilia_

_Side note: Expect next the chapter to be really fun, I'm already a third of the way through! (It makes me feel like I'm pulling a Tina Belcher. There's some talk of butts)_

* * *

Don't Hurt My Pride Like Her

(The Beatles: If I Fell)

"Ugh, you're such a cheater!" Abigail threw her cards at her brother. He had won 4 times in a row.

"It's UNO! You can't cheat at UNO!" Levi argued.

"Apparently _you_ can! There's no way you're that lucky."

Cath set her cards down and watched the two continue bickering as they headed downstairs to the kitchen. She wanted everyone to go to bed so Levi would finally tell her what the "surprise" was. Everytime she asked he'd just hush her and tell her they'd have to wait until they could get outside unnoticed. The excitement kept her stomach in knots.

John sat up on his pillow across from her, "Abby's wrong; he always tries to go easier on his little sisters, even at bowling, and he loves to go bowling."

"Yeah, he took me bowling." Cath laughed.

"I heard," He smiled, lower lip under his teeth, "They said you need baby bumpers to hit a pin."

"Oh, how embarrassing." She frowned.

"That's alright, I'm not very good at it either."

"So you make up for it by singing karaoke?"

"Definitely." John laughed.

Cath was glad that she was getting to know him better. He was awkward and dorky, but she was too, so they got along really easily. Levi and John went together really well and she really liked how much they obviously loved each other. They were really comfortable with their friendship, and it made her feel good that they let her in. Wren had been in a relationship where her boyfriend wouldn't hang out with her and his "boys" at the same time, but it wasn't like that with them. If Levi was a golden retriever, then John was a St Bernard. Oversized and lovable, but really calm.

"Where do you go to school?" Cath asked, sprawling out on the floor.

"SOU."

"What's that?"

"Southern Oregon University. It's in Ashland."

"You're studying theater right?"

"Yeah, I'm trying to become a big actor," He frowned, "But I'm too anxious around people to get a part in anything."

"A lot of actors have social anxiety," Cath said, "I think you'll be fine. Just don't quit trying, college costs too much to quit."

John's face lit up, "Thanks. You're not as scary as most girls."

"You're scared of girls?"

"Duh, they have cooties."

They giggled.

Abigail and Levi walked back in holding a pitcher of lemonade, cups, and cookies. They were singing _One Fat Hen _and got through the last verse without messing up. He ran his fingers through his hair, as they bowed down. She and John clapped for them.

"Jonathan, why is Jenga not set up? " Levi laughed and sat on Cath, "Idea!"

"God," She jumped, "What?"

"Okay, if you get pregnant with boy twins you have to name them John and Nathan so their names make Jonathan. Just like you and Wren!"

"You're so weird." She tried pushing him off.

"You have to, it would be the cutest!" He laid across her.

"Well I hope if I ever have twin boys, their dad won't let me do that."

"I would let you do that." Levi winked.

"Good thing I'm not having your kids then." It came out harsher than intended, and she regretted saying it immediately.

"Right," He cringed, "Come on, I'm gonna kick everyone's asses at Jenga, too."

* * *

Something was wrong. The night had gone from great to horrible the longer it dragged on. Levi's smiles were forced, he couldn't look at Cath without tensing up and he didn't call her Cather. It was hours before John went home and they were finally alone.

"Let's go for a walk." He took her hand, but kept some distance between them.

"Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise." Levi smiled at the ground.

"Wait," She leaned against the fence and took his other hand, "Why are you mad at me?"

"I'm never mad at you."

"Then what's wrong?"

"I don't know," He kissed her forehead, "Can we just keep walking?"

Levi started walking down the dusty road with his fists shoved in his pockets. Cath felt her heart drop as she watched him drag his feet on the dirt. He was at least 10 feet away, before he realized that she wasn't following him.

"Cath, come on."

She shook her head.

"Cath, I'm fine." His arms were around her before she realized he was back.

"I can tell that you're not."

He sighed, "Why are you being _so _mean to me tonight?"

"I'm not being mean, I want to know what's wrong!" She said, defensively.

"Not now, earlier." His eyes were watery, "You were flirting with John all night and the harder I tried to get your attention the more you ignored me or

had some snide remark to make me feel like an idiot."

"What are you talking about? I didn't mean to flirt with him, we were just talking. And I didn't know I was ignoring you, and I definitely wasn't trying to hurt you at all. God, I don't even think of John as someone I'd flirt with; he's your _friend._"

Tears were rolling down his cheeks. She had never seen him cry before. His eyes were wide and wet, and his mouth was a flat line. Cath was always the one who cried, it was almost unnerving to see Levi crying like that because she didn't know how to help him. It wasn't something a dance party could fix.

"You don't understand, Cath." He wiped his reddened cheeks, "I can't lose you like that."

"Like what? Levi you need _tell_ me what's going on, I'm not a mind reader."

"Like Reagan."

Cath wasn't sure what to think about that. On one level, it made her sad; did he not trust her? She couldn't ever do that to him, she loved him. On another level, she was furious for the exact same reasons.

"Cather," Levi lifted her onto the fence so they were face-to-face, "I know you would never cheat on me, but I can't help being afraid. When I found out Reagan cheated on me, it was one of the worst things that has ever happened to me. I ended up partying a lot more than I care to admit until my grades were fucked beyond repair. My sisters pretty much had an intervention."

"I couldn't cheat on you," She mumbled, dabbing at his nose with the sleeve of her cardigan, "Even if I wanted to."

"I trust you, Cather. I just get worried." He said, fighting back another round of tears, "And a little jealous."

"You don't have to be."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Cath kissed him between the eyes, "You're _always _so good to me, I think you're entitled to throw a tantrum every once and awhile."

Levi's smile was back, it was teary and snotty, but it was there.

"Let's go for a walk."

* * *

"Surprise!"

It was like everything Cath could have ever asked for all in a 9x9 foot space. Levi filled his old treehouse with several shelves worth of books. There was a mattress pad like the one from school in the corner with tons of pillows and a couple blankets. A lamp, a shelf with a CostCo sized box of Blueberry Bliss protein bars and juice boxes, functioning windows, and a pair of new pajama pants. It was even tall enough for Levi to stand straight in. She wished this was her dorm room.

"This is what I've been doing all week. It needed a lot of T.L.C. but I got it done," He smiled, "I didn't know what books to put in here so I brought as many from the hall closet as I could fit on the shelves."

"You did all of this?" She was in shock.

"Well, my dad made it when I was little, but I put up the shelves and gave it attention where it needed it. The bedding was a pain in the ass to get up here, though."

"How much did this cost?" Cath had her hands on top of her head.

"I have a job, it doesn't matter." Levi touched her lower back.

She spun around and pressed her lips to his. He wiggled excitedly, knocking the trapdoor closed with his foot. Her fingers were lost in his hair and his were trying to work her jeans off. They separated for a brief minute to strip down to their underwear before their mouths found each other again. Cath pulled him to the little nest of pillows in the corner. They kissed for a while, falling further into the cushions.

"So, you like it, then?" He smiled, moving to her throat.

"God, this is one of the cutest things anyone has ever done for me," She moaned as he gently bit at her neck.

"Good," Levi sat up and kissed her tummy, "Because this isn't even what I was excited to give you."

"_What?"_

He stood and walked over to one of the shelves, picking up a brown-paper-and-ribbon-wrapped gift box. Cath's mouth was ajar, how could she have missed that? Levi sat next to her and set the package on her lap; it was heavier than she expected. She took off the ribbon and tore off the paper, not taking her eyes off Levi.

"Look at _it_, not me, silly." He was smiling hard.

In her lap was a set of eight books, leather bound with gold-leafed pages, and golden font on the covers and spines. Cath choked. They were the special edition covers, there were only a limited number printed and they could only be purchased online. She was on the verge of tears, those books had costed way more than she could afford at the time they came out and they sold out on the first day.

"How did you get these?" Cath stared at them like they were gold plated as opposed to gold-leafed.

"I stayed up to late," Levi kissed her cheek, "Open the last book."

Her heart nearly stopped. On the front page of the eighth book there was writing in red felt tip pen. It read:

**_"Dear Cather Avery,_**

**_I was told that you are an aspiring author. While I get that a lot from fans, I wanted to say you, dear, are truly an amazing writer. I don't usually read fanfiction, but I read just a few snippets of your writing from "Carry On, Simon" and I was very impressed. It was like you took my story and gave it an alternative ending. Never stop writing._**

**_Yours truly, G. T. Leslie"_**

Cath couldn't stop the tears from rushing down her cheek. This was impossible. It couldn't happen, it was too fairytale. _Things like this don't happen in real life, this is a dream,_ she thought. She wiped her eyes with a throw pillow, but more were coming out than she could mop up. _This isn't real, this isn't real, this is a dream, this isn't real..._

"Sweetheart, don't cry. It's okay." His hand found hers.

_This is Levi._

"How did you do this? This isn't real. It can't be real."

"I've been schmoozing my way through the internet for the past month and a half," Levi kissed her temple, " This was supposed to be your birthday present, but that woman is harder to contact than I thought."

"Don't make me laugh," She started hiccuping, "Jesus, I think I'm having an anxiety attack."

He laid her back on the pillows and draped a blanket over them. Their fingers were still interlocked while his other hand rubbed circles over her stomach. His mouth made its way to her ear to her throat to her collarbone, then to her cheeks, trying to kiss away the tears. Levi held her, humming songs, for a good 15 minutes before she was breathing steady again.

"I don't even understand what's happening right now." Cath's voice was dry and raspy from crying.

"It's okay, Sweetheart." He reached up for a juice box and handed it to her. She drank it like it was a cure-all.

"What?" She sniffed, "Seriously, Levi, I don't understand. You had to have written that, this can't be real."

"That better be real, I paid for shipping, like, 5 times." He laughed, holding her in his lap.

"This is really real. Like this is _really-"  
_

"It really is, Cather."

"That's so much _money, _though."

"Don't even think about money. It's just cotton and paper." Levi shrugged with a smirk on his face, "But I'm a pretty good saver, too."

"It's too much." She shook her head.

"Did it make you happy?"

"Euphoric."

"Then _I_ think it was well spent," He buried his nose in her hair, "If you want to repay me though, you can read me the series. I've only ever heard the eighth."

Cath reached over for one of the books and yawned. He laid her down again.

"Not tonight," Levi giggled, "You need to rest."

Their lips met sleepily. It was just like the first one. His kisses taking something from her, her hands in his hair, unable to open her eyes. And like the first time, she couldn't stay awake.


	7. Chapter 7: If You Can Be Happy for Me

_I'm sorry, I had a concert last night and totally blew you off. It was a great concert though, my friend and I talked to the lead singer of WALK THE MOON. I hope your week was a good one, and I'll talk to you next time!  
Sorry that this chapter is so cattywompus.\_

_Thanks for reading!  
Cecilia_

* * *

If You Can Be Happy for Me

(Gwen Stefani: Cool)

Levi looked about 3 years younger when he was asleep. His face looked smoother, his hair flopped forward and his whole body was more relaxed than his usual casual demeanor. Even asleep it looked like there was just the slightest hint of smile leftover on his little, pink mouth. The last thing she remembered from the night before was his lips on hers. He was the sweetest thing Cath had ever seen.

She slid out from under his arm and stood up. At some point in the night, he must have taken off his boxers because he was on his stomach with his entire backside exposed. Cath dug through their piles of clothes to find her phone to get a picture. She never realized how much of a bubble butt he had; it was pale in comparison to the rest of his tanned skin and looked really smooth. _God, I'm being creepy. Well kind of, I mean, he's always taking pictures of me when I'm asleep. Not totally naked though. _She got a couple pictures of his face up close as well.

"Please, no flash photography." Levi smirked and opened an eye halfway. _Click. _

"I think that might be the cutest picture I have of you," She giggled.

"Oh yeah?" He took her phone and started making faces. _Click. Click. Click, _"How about now?"

"Ooh, Levi, are you taking nude selfies?" Cath kissed his cheek, "Scandalous."

"What will the neighbors think?" Levi gasped in mock distress.

"You know what _I _think, Levi?" She ran a finger down his spine.

He let out a moan and buried his face into a pillow, "Hmm?"

"I think I'd really like some breakfast."

"You're such a smart ass."

Cath took a Blueberry Bliss bar from the box on the shelf and threw one onto his back. They sat in silence as they nibbled. She looked down to the floor next to her feet at the eight leatherbound books that had sent her into a panic the night before. Her heart started pounding as she picked up the first book, propping herself up and flipping to the first page. As she began to read, Levi's lips curled upwards and his eyes darted up to look at her through heavy, dusty brown lashes.

"Don't look so cute or I won't be able to read." Cath giggled, "_Simon Snow and the Mage's Heir."_

Levi bit his lip and buried his face into her side. She ran her fingers through his hair as she read. Every so often she'd pause to check if he was asleep, but he never was. His head would lift up a little with an eyebrow cocked, then fall back when she continued. They stopped reading after they finished the third chapter.

Levi kissed her stomach and rested his chin on her belly button, "Let's just never leave this treehouse."

"Okay." Cath slid down so they were face-to-face. He pressed his forehead to hers, "Levi?"

"Yes, Sweetheart?" His hand moved to her hip.

"Why aren't you wearing anything?"

"Why are you?" He didn't miss a beat, but he blushed, "Actually, I think I got hot last night."

"You're really cute." Cath thought out loud.

"You're beautiful."

She frowned, "God, I hate it when you do that."

"What; remind you of how beautiful you are?" Levi pulled her into him, "Because I think you forget sometimes."

"You're a little _too_ cute..."

Cath kissed his chin and frowned at her phone vibrating somewhere beneath the blankets. They fumbled around in the bedding until they found it. She rolled her eyes at her sister.

The texts read:  
_you haven't talked to me in foreverrrrrr. _

_how is it out there?  
_

_have you hit it?_

_OMG, you hit it didn't you?  
_

_Text me back._

_ARE YOU HITTING IT RIGHT NOW?_

_you are, aren't you? ;)  
_

_TEXT. ME. BACK._

Levi read them over her shoulder and laughed, "You gonna hit this, Cather? You want to hit this."

"God, you two are terrible."

Cath texted back:  
_**NO.**_

_uggggh, why not?  
_

_**Did you want to tell me something?  
**_

_No I just wanted to talk to my seeeeeester :3  
_

_**Love you too... Want to see what Levi got me?  
**_

_YES! :3333333_

She sent Wren a picture of the new Simon Snow books.

_OH MY GD, ARE THOS WHAT I THINK THEY AR?_

_*god *thse *are_

_**those_

_I'm freaking out_

_**RIGHT? They're perfect *3***_

_GOD. How did he get those?_

_No. Quit texting me, go bang him._

_Bang him._

_**Ok**_

Cath threw her phone to the side and let it go off without checking it. Levi giggled and shook his head, letting his hair flop into his eyes. She ran her fingers through it before he could, kissing his temple as her fingers held the fine, blonde hair back.

"Let's go out of town tonight. We can go to a movie and eat somewhere too expensive." He said, wearing a pleasant smile.

"How about just a movie?"

"I do what I want, Cather." Levi sat up and reached for his boxers.

* * *

They ended up shoving an air mattress, pillows and blankets into the bed of his truck and driving three hours to the Neligh drive-in theater. There was a double feature of _Brave_ and _The Avengers_ playing which were both movies that they were excited to see. The night was cool so it was a perfect occasion to curl up in their blankets and cuddle up. They hadn't even bothered to wear nice clothes because the movies didn't start until 6:30, so they didn't get to leave until 11:00

"Levi, do you want me to drive?" Cath asked. She had taken a nap in the cab with a blanket draped over her and her head in his lap.

"That's alright, Sweetheart. We're only an hour out at this point." Levi said, not taking his eyes off the road.

She could tell he was getting tired by his droopy eyelids, but his body was tensed up and he was driving carefully down the dimly lit roads. He was being extra cautious because Cath wasn't wearing a seatbelt, but he knew she wouldn't listen no matter how much he protested.

"Just let me know if you need a break." Cath yawn and nuzzled into his flannel pajama pants.

By the time they made it to the ranch it was almost 2:30am. Levi was fighting to stay awake as they walked as quietly as possible into the house. His king size bed felt like clouds when they fell under the covers together. The two of them slept made the unspoken plan to sleep in until noon the next day, but the door flew open far too early that morning. Marlisse stormed in looking absolutely furious.

"Where on God's green Earth were you yesterday?" She seethed.

"What the hell are you doing in here?" Levi jumped, with his arm thrown defensively over Cath, "Jesus Christ, It's 6 in the morning. Mother, get out."

"Levi Pickering Stewart, you do _not_ get to use that tone of voice with me!" Marlisse had her hand on her hips, "Where were you? Where was you _phone?"  
_

"It died, I left here on the charg-" He snapped, "I don't owe you an explanation, get out of my room, I'm not 16 anymore. You can't pull this bullshit with me."

"Excuse me, I am your mother," She yelled, "And maybe if you weren't sleeping around with all these whore women, I wouldn't have to be concerned about where you're going."

Levi was out of the bed before Cath had a chance to get offended. She sat up against the headboard and watched Levi tower over his mother. He looked huge in comparison, every muscle in his body was tight and his jaw was clenched.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" He crossed his arms, "Get out of my room."

Marlisse began to protest again.

"No, listen to me for once; Cather is a good girl. Keep her out of this."

"How am I supposed to believe that? Reagan was a whore just like her sister."

"Shut up, you don't know what you're even talking about." His knuckles were turning white.

"She slept around behind your back," Marlisse stated matter-of-factly, "Maybe you like whores though. I bet they put out whenever you want them to."

"We haven't had sex." Cath spoke up.

Marlisse looked down at her patronizingly, "Don't expect me to believe that."

"Get out of my room." Levi was biting into his bottom lip.

"This is my home, I can be in here if I want."

"Get fucked, you fucking bigot."

Marlisse slapped him. He looked like he was fighting back tears as he looked back to Cath. She was confused and tired. Too much had happened all at once and she didn't know what to do. His mother was leaning in the doorframe watching Levi stuff his things into a plastic tub. Maybe that was a sign for her to start packing her things as well, but nothing really seemed like the right thing to do.

"Did you seriously just come up here just to yell at me?" Levi sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"No..." His mother shook her head, "There was an accident with your grandmother."

"_What?"_

"They gave her the wrong pills last night, she had a seizure and fell out of her bed. She hasn't woken up yet." Marlisse started crying, "I may not have agreed with that woman, but I never wanted her to die."

Cath crawled over to Levi and hugged him. He was watching his mom with a blank expression. She could feel him shivering every so often. No one spoke for 5 minutes, the entire house was silent. Levi stood up and started to pull on day clothes. He handed Cath one of his shirts to put on over her leggings and picked up his tub.

As they walked out of his room, he looked down at his mother and said, "Don't call my girlfriend a whore."


	8. Chapter 8: I Want To Hold Your Hand

_Hello! Hope you had a nice week. Sorry about the late post AGAIN! I had a hard time with this chapter, but as the two month mark I wanted it to be at least on the verge of perfected. x3_

_Oh yeah, sexual content warning. Definite adult themes towards the end and not in the fun way, but don't worry it's not terribly graphic._

_I'll see you next week! I'm thinking I'll be back on track by next Sunday._

_Happy anniversary,_

_Cecilia_

* * *

I Want To Hold Your Hand

(The Beatles: I Want To Hold Your Hand)

For the first time in forever, Levi didn't have anything to say. It was a very silent car ride to God-knows-where and Cath couldn't help but roll her eyes when she looked at her boyfriend. Every so often he'd reach over to touch her but he'd never take his eyes off of the road. That just made things worse though. She was angry because they left behind almost all of her things, but at the same time she understood what is was like to be angry at his mom. At least she had little Baz.

Finally fed up with the lack of noise, she took his phone and started skimming through the music. He had a lot of Led Zeppelin, but other than that it was pretty diverse. When she decided there was too much to choose from, she checked his playlists. There was one for almost every situation: "Weerrrkin' out", "Christmas Party Time", "DID SOMEONE SAY FIESTA?", "Thyme 4 Work". She giggled when she came across one called "I Miss My Cather :'((((".

"Who is this?" Cath asked as a song began to blast from the speakers.

"Walk The Moon. This album just came out a couple weeks ago." Levi spoke up, "John and I went to Lollapalooza last summer and we really liked them."

_"When you are close to me I shiver..." _

"It's really fun music." He smiled. Cath felt herself relax, it was nice to see him smiling again.

_"Shall we get intimate again? I think so, I think so."_

"This playlist is called 'I miss my Cather'." She unbuckled and switched seats with the little rabbit.

"Oh, yeah. They're all songs that make me think of you." Levi blushed and rested his hand on her thigh.

When she looked through the songs her cheeks went pink too. The playlist had over 40 songs on it:

**I've Just Seen A Face (The Beatles)**

**All My Lovin' (The Beatles)**

**No You Girls (Franz Ferdinand)**

**I'm Yours (Jason Mraz)**

**Your Body Is A Wonderland (John Mayer)**

**All My Love (Led Zeppelin)  
**

**Thank You (Led Zeppelin)**

**Sea Of Love (Phil Phillips, the original from 1959)**

**My Girl (The Temptations)**

**Shiver Shiver (WALK THE MOON)**

**I Can Lift A Car (WALK THE MOON)**

Plus so many more.

There were just such gooey love songs on it (The exception being the vast numbers of Kanye West songs). Cath gave him a kiss on his jawline. Levi pulled the car over. They were out on the side of an old gravelly road surrounded by rows of crops, listening to the music pour out of the speakers.

"I yelled at my mom." Levi sighed, "And we left your laptop behind."

"Yeah." She said.

"We can go back later. She'll be at church today and she'll be there praying my bad away."

"I don't blame you, Levi."

"I really want to see my grandma," He leaned against the window and wrapped his arms around his knees so he was facing Cath, "But I don't even know which hospital they took her to."

"Well, I think we should find some shade and take a nap." Cath forced a smile, "You're upset, and tired, and stressed, and there is perfectly good bedding back there."

"Let's just go to John's." Levi suggested, running his hands through the blonde mess on his head. His hair was getting too long and he'd needed to shave for several days, "We can pass out in his basement for a while."

John lived in a traditional red, ranch-style home with big, bushy fields of berries. His basement was turned into a guest room which he happily let them stay in. Cath watched Levi strip down to his t-shirt and boxer briefs, then slid under the covers. They snuggled up close under the fleece blanket and tried to catch up on some lost sleep. Levi was snoring lightly within minutes, but Cath was too wired up to fall unconscious so easily.

She tried to get comfortable for what must have been a half hour before she eventually went upstairs for a glass of water. John was on the couch watching _American Horror Story _and stuffing popcorn in his mouth, letting her rabbit eat the pieces that he dropped. Cath sat in one of the brown leather recliners.

"Are you okay?" He asked, setting aside his ridiculously oversized popcorn bowl.

"I'm fine."

"Okay." John was chewing on his bottom lip, "Do you want some popcorn?"

Cath gave an exhausted smile, "No, thank you."

He turned to the TV again.

"Uhm, John..." She coughed.

"Yes?"

"How often does Levi _actually_ try to leave his mom's house?"

"Does he what?" John's big, brown eye were wider than she knew eyes could open.

"He packed up some of his things this morning and we left." Cath explained, "He even told his mom to go fuck herself."

"No way! Levi?" He was shaking his head, "Uhm, well never. He never does that."

"Okay, then this is serious." She frowned.

They sat around watching the screen, talking every so often, and sometimes Cath even dozed off. When a door creaked open, they sat up and looked to see a very groggy Levi with terrible greasy hair and bloodshot eyes. He plopped down on the cushion next to his best friend and threw his legs across him. John patted the hairy calf on his lap.

"You okay?"

"I guess." Levi shrugged, "Where's Baz?"

"Here." He pulled the little red ball from the other cushion and passed him over.

Levi rubbed noses with him, "Did you get any sleep, Cather?"

"Not really, no." She said.

"Oh... well we can go get your things later. I need to see my grandma today, and my sisters are going there after dinner tonight. I can have Abigail get your things. Or Shiloh, she'll remember your books."

"Your mom isn't going?" Cath scoffed.

"I think she's waiting for my dad to get home before she goes."

"Levi, where are you going to stay?" John asked, "You can bunk here until my parents get back, but I don't know if they'll be okay with you staying the whole summer."

"Thanks, John." Levi smiled, "I'll take you home tomorrow, alright Cather?"

"No, I want to stay with you." She protested.

"This isn't my house, I've managed to screw up everything out here" He sat up and pulled her to the couch, "I think one more night is a safe idea."

"Fine."

The day passed by slowly, attempting to watch the entire season of _American Horror Story_. It made things worse that it was going to be their last day together. Cath wanted it to be fun. It most definitely wasn't fun until Levi suggested they needed to take showers. Or rather, a shower.

"C'mon, Cather, let me show you where the bathroom is." He said, guiding her downstairs to the guest bathroom.

As soon as they hit the stone tiles Levi lifted her onto the counter top and started kissing her neck. His beard was scratching her skin but she kind of liked it. He bit her where her neck met her shoulder and Cath couldn't help but groan. Levi grinned and pulled away to look into her eyes.

"I'm sorry this week was so shitty." He unbuttoned her shirt, "Can I try to make it up to you?"

"I actually had a nice time with you, well, whenever you were around," She said as coolly as she could managed while his hands worked off her leggings, "But I would love to get into that shower with you."

"I'm glad."

Levi took his clothes off like it was nothing, but standing in her bra and panties, Cath felt oddly exposed. He had seen her naked plenty of times before, yet somehow both being naked together, in a strangers home felt like she was letting him see her in a totally different light. The steam from the shower felt really inviting when it hit her skin. Levi stepped in, letting the droplets run down his body, and looked over at her expectantly.

She took a deep breath, removed the rest of her clothes, and hopped in next to her boyfriend. He leaned over to kiss her and began to rub a bar of soap along her back in circular motions. As his hands went lower hers made their way up to his hair, massaging his head with a fruity shampoo. His fingers slid between her thighs and inside of her. Cath groaned as his thumb flicked at her most sensitive spot, teasing and never staying there quite long enough. The two fingers inside of her were moving in such a nice rhythm, she could feel her knees getting wobbly. Levi held her against him as her breaths began to get uneven, but only continued to quicken his pace and press harder into her clitoris. After another few minutes of his slick, soapy hands working into her, she let out a loud moan and fell into his arms unable to stand straight as she came.

Once Cath caught her footing again, she looked over the surprisingly toned torso in front of her. It was all she could really tolerate looking at, because she knew if she were to look up to his face or down to his erection, that would be the end of her virginity. The idea of losing it in the shower was the only thing stopping her from going all the way with him at that moment because something in her mind told her that shower sex, although was allegedly sexy and kinky, was not the best first time position. She wanted it to be a little more special than falling over in a bubbly mess.

Levi laughed and pulled their bodies together again, "Don't worry, we don't have to go any further than that."

Cath exhaled, unable to ignore how hard he felt against her stomach.

"Maybe just a little further." She giggled, getting down to her knees.

* * *

"Gross." John sneered as they entered the living room again, "Did you just... No, wait, don't answer that. I don't want to know."

"We are youths, Jonathan. Young, naive and horny." Levi sat on his friend's lap, laughing at the look of true disgust on his face, "But don't worry, no technical baby-making actions occurred in the making of this shower."

"Don't be nasty, Levi." Cath rolled her eyes, "Aren't you supposed to be, like, high fiving and chest bumping, and other weird gorilla things guys do?"

"God, no." John was frowning, "I'm not really interested in sex."

She snorted, "Yeah, sure."

"I'm really not," He was trying to get Levi off of him, "Levi, your smashing my dick, man."

"Don't tell me what to do, Johnny." Levi snickered, "But actually, it's getting late, do you want to go grab some food before we take off to the hospital?"

"No, that's alright, you guys should go out without me if you're forcing her back home so soon." He winked, "But honestly, Cath, if you want to stay here too, you can. Don't let stupey over here tell you you're not welcome."

"Really?" She smiled.

"Yeah, I just don't want to hear you two tearing up the bedroom downstairs." He said, half jokingly.

"Deal." Cath gave a wry smile, "Why does everyone assume we're attached at the crotches?"

"You are 'youths,' Catherine. 'Young, naive and horny.'"

"My name isn't Catherine."

"It isn't?"

"No, it's Cather." Levi intercepted, "Now will mommy and daddy quit arguing? You're frightening the children."

John adjusted his glasses and smiled, "Sorry. I hate to seem so annoyed. Sex isn't really my scene."

"It's okay, I don't really rock that way either." Cath nodded, "Thank you, John. It's nice of you to let me stay."

"How could I say no? You brought a bunny." He finally pushed Levi off of him, "Now go eat dinner and get your shit."

When they sat down to eat, Cath got a good look at her weird, hipster-esque boyfriend. His hair looked like a pompadour and his beard looked much fuller now that it was clean. He was wearing a flannel shirt and his black, work skinny jeans. She had to laugh aloud.

"What?" Levi grinned, looking around the restaurant.

"You!"

"Me? What did I do?"

"You're just really cute." She giggled, "You look like a cookie cutter hipster."

"Well isn't _that_ an oxymoron." He smiled, watching her face as she continued to laugh, "Have I told you that I loved you today?"

"Not that I can recall."

"Well, I love you." Levi nudged his foot against hers.

"I love you, too."

They played footsie while they waited for their food. Moments like these were her favorite; just the two of them, flirting, nothing to worry about, asking her questions about growing up, avoiding sensitive topics, making jokes, teasing her in a playful way. Cath liked to watch him when he'd go off on tangents about how cute he thought her stories were. Sometimes it was terrifying to feel so comfortable with another person, but she was so happy to have him. He was the best thing that's happened to her. It made her wonder if that's how everyone felt when they were in love.

"Hey Levi?" Cath took a bite of a french fry.

"Hmm?"

"Why is John so anal about sex?"

The word choice wasn't the best and Levi lost it.

"You know what I meant." She was doubled over from laughter as well.

He spoke when he gained composure again, "John had a pretty shitty childhood before he moved to Arnold."

"What happened?"

"Don't talk to him about it alright?"

She nodded.

"Well, when he was little his mom went absolutely insane, I mean, she was a total tweaker and an alcoholic too, but she totally lost it one day." Levi put down his burger, "I guess what happened is she blamed him for his dad leaving, and uhm, she wanted to punish him."

"Oh, did she beat him?"

"Not exactly. She started to, uhm, t-to," He swallowed hard, "She started to touch him and eventually that led to him getting taken away."

"Oh my God." Cath wiped her eyes.

"His mom cut him up pretty bad too." Levi took her hand, "All his pieces work down there, he's just a little genophobic now."

"Poor guy..."

"He's okay, his aunt and uncle took him in. He's lived with them since he was four, that's why he says they're his parents."

Cath was tearing up, "I feel really bad now, John's such a sweet guy."

"Let's talk about something else, I hate to see you cry." Levi kissed her fingers.

That conversation segued into talking about _Law & Order: SVU, _to the episode with Lee Pace in it, to _Pushing Daisies. _They joked about opening a pie bakery in a 1950s style diner that they would call "The Pie-ner". Cath smiled at the idea of Levi prancing around in a little, white half-apron and his all black _Starbucks _garb, with flour in his hair. He smiled too, and she could tell he was picturing the exact same thing about her.

**A/N: Christ on a bicycle, I'm sorry about how poorly edited that was! Don't worry, I'm fixing it. I was pretty tired when I was doing final edits and me'thinks that's the last time I do edits so late at night. My bad... **


	9. Chapter 9: Welcome to the Real World

_Hello! I had to change the update date from every Sunday to weekly. It gives me a little more leeway for editing and whatnot. _

_This chapter was just to get things out of the stupid grog they've been stuck in. Levi's borderline depressed, amirite? Don't worry, I'll have that fixed up soon._

_Thank you for reading!  
Cecilia!_

**_SIDE NOTE:_** _**There's going to be a Fangirl related surprise in the next few months! It's really fun, so if you're following my account then you're in for a treat! BUT if you're not following my account, that's okay you'll be able to find it in the Fangirl category. (Probably rated T)**_

* * *

Welcome to the Real World, She Said to Me

(John Mayer: No Such Thing)

"I can't believe you yelled at mom." Mary kicked her brother from her chair, and looked over to her sisters, "He's so stupid sometimes."

"Shut up Mary," Abigail snapped, "Mama beat him."

"She didn't beat him, she _slapped_ him." Shiloh shook her head, "I think he was right to yell at her, she knows he's a good boy."

"Quit talking about me like I'm not even here. Christ, you guys are like a sewing circle." Levi frowned, sitting next to his older sister in the window seat.

"Well, what happened, 'Vi?" Shiloh always called him "'Vi," as if his name wasn't already so short.

"I'll call you later." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, "So, how long have you girls been here for?"

Cath stood next to the sink, pretending to rearrange the absurdly oversized bouquet of yellow roses they had brought. She didn't know what to do with herself. The four siblings took up all the seats, but even if there was more space, she was too uneasy to sit. Their grandma looked dead as a doornail lying under the hospital blankets and she couldn't stand to look at her for very long.

"I'm going to go walk around for awhile." Cath said.

Levi shot out of his seat and rushed over to her, "Hey, I'm sorry. I totally lost my manners, do you want sit?"

"No, that's fine. I'll stay in the area. Maybe I'll go get a popsicle or something."

"Please stay." His eyebrows were pulled together and he held her hand between his.

"Alrigh-" She began to agree out of guilt.

"Now, Levi, she is stuck in a room with a sickly old woman and a bunch of strangers. Don't make her feel obligated to stay here just because you're sad." Shiloh scolded.

He looked down at their hands, "Do you want some money?"

"I'm fine," Cath gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, "I'll be back a little later."

"Okay."

She walked out of the room and took a deep breath. The hospital was too quiet and everywhere she went smelled unpleasantly sterile. It made her think back to earlier in the year when her sister got alcohol poisoning. Last summer she and Wren were arguing over separate rooming. Everything changed since Levi came around. _If you give Levi an inch..._

Cath did a few laps around the hospital before going in to find the food court. She was more winded than she had expected to be and reconsidered sitting around in her dorm so much. In high school, she wasn't the best swimmer on the team, but she could do several laps without feeling like dough and swimming is much more energy consuming than jogging. _Maybe I can join the college swim team… okay, probably not. I could just start swimming again in general, that'd be okay. But I got kind of chubby this year, I don't want to look horrible in a suit. _She looked down into the little freezer at the popsicles and felt guilty for a moment.

_Fuck it._ Cath shrugged as she picked a _Spongebob Squarepants _popsicle with gumball eyes.

* * *

Reagan scowled as soon as she opened the door. To anyone who didn't know her, they'd have ran for the hills.

"Hey." Cath smiled and followed her to the living room.

"You've been in Arnold for two weeks and you guys haven't even invited me out. Don't 'hey' me." She hissed, but there was the beginning of a smile on her face.

"Sorry. It's been pretty crazy," Levi pushed his hair back.

"Your mom?"

"Yes."

"I totally called it, she's batshit crazy." Reagan smirked, "Details?"

"Well-" An excited squeal cut him off.

"Levi!" A little girl whipped around the the half wall that separated the kitchen from the living room.

The Joker and victims of the 'Chelsea grin' had nothing on how wide Levi's smile was. He had the up-in-Cath's-stereotypical-teen-girl face on.

"Hello Katie-cat! How are you, little princess?"

"Mad at you." She frowned and put her hands on her little hips.

Levi kneeled in front of her and set her on his knee, "You're mad at me? Why are you mad at me, princess?"

"You haven't visited me since last summer. You said you'd see me at Christmas. You're a lie-face."

"Oh, Katie-cat, I was having a really hard Christmas break, I totally forgot." He thumped his head playfully, "But I hope I can make it up to you by playing some _tea party?"_

"YES!"

Levi was as good as gone. The two of them were in the kitchen floor setting up toys and a little tea set. Cath and Reagan just sat back and watched the two start playing like he wasn't just in the beginning of a conversation. Little kids make the greatest cop-outs.

Reagan snorted, "Levi loves people. He _adores little _kids. He's always wanted to be a dad."

"Ground rules." Cath said, quickly.

"Whatever. It's true, just look at them."

"He'll be a good dad one day." She nodded.

"Duh," Reagan smiled a little, "He doesn't talk about it all the time?"

"No, but I did accidentally shoot him down when he brought it up one time."

"No shit?" She looked genuinely surprised, "Did Marlisse walk in on you guys, is that why he moved out?"

"Not exactly, what happened is- erh, ground rules?"

"None applicable in this situation." Reagan shrugged.

Cath took a few minutes to explain the day out with his mom, hanging out with John, Levi getting jealous, the treehouse, the books, the day out, the mom fight. Everything happened faster than Cath had realized within the past week and a half.

"Shit," Reagan raised an eyebrow, "You're the feather."

"The feather?"

"The one that finally set everything off balance."

"Oh..."

"It's not your fault at all. Trust me they'll be fine."

"Thanks, Reagan."

"No problem. I kind of missed your sorry ass." She grinned and gave her a little kick.

Cath giggled, "Me too... Now who is that little girl?"

"My niece. I'm a-babysittin' this weekend."

The two of them kept talking for awhile, that is until they noticed that Levi was leaning against the doorframe grinning. Neither of them knew how long he had been standing there for, but he looked happy.

"Look at you girls, getting along and smiling for once." He giggled and made his way to the restroom down the hall.


	10. Chapter 10: I'll Have to Leave Soon

_Hello reader! I'm so glad you're reading this chapter, honestly, it's so exciting knowing that you're enjoying my writing. I mean if you've made it to chapter 10 you have to like it at least a little. :)_

_Anyways, I'm going to be taking a little break so there won't be a new chapter until 10/5. I'm going to go back through and do some grammar/spelling/fact corrections, take some time to work on my side project, and really just take some stress off of my shoulders! _

_Don't worry though, I'd never give up on you._

_Thank you, again,_

_Cecilia_

* * *

I'll Have to Leave Soon

(Maroon 5: Daylight)

Cath could tell something was wrong. She pried herself from Levi's arms and sat up straight. It was two o'clock in the morning, but she was wide awake. There was a slick, but sticky feeling when she moved and she quickly realized what had happened. Mortified, Cath jumped out of the bed and turned on the bedside lamp.

There was blood on the bed where she had been sitting, where she had originally fallen asleep and even worse than she could have possibly imagined, there was blood on Levi's pajama pants. Her face was hot and tears of embarrassment began to dribble down her cheeks. For once she knew that she wasn't being the irrational, always-cries sister; this was a situation that would shatter even Wren into a million humiliated pieces. Levi began to stir because of the light.

"Mmm, Cather?" He cringed when he opened his eyes, "Sweetie, what's going on?"

She couldn't speak.

Then he saw his pants, "Oh my _god! _What happened?"

"I'm so sorry, Levi." Cath choked, "I-I'm sorry..."

"Sweetheart..." Levi said. He looked uneasy, but was surprisingly calm as he slid out of his pajamas, "Take a deep breath."

He sat on the edge of the bed and held her hand. Cath couldn't make eye contact with him, but she couldn't let go of him either. Her head fell forward in defeat.

"So, I'm taking this is your blood and I'm not bleeding out the dick."

She nodded, missing the humorous tone in his voice, "I'm so sorry, Levi. I didn't mean to-"

"You didn't mean to be a woman? Because that's kind of why I like you."

"You know what I mean..." She rolled her eyes, but smiled gratefully, "This is so embarrassing."

"It's alright, sweetheart." Levi said, "Why don't you get in the shower. I'll go to the store and get you some... stuff."

"What? No, you don't have to go alone, I can be ready in-"

"I want to, Cather. I have four sisters, I understand, this isn't your fault." He pressed her fingers against his mouth as he spoke, "Don't worry, sweetheart."

"What about the sheets?"

"Don't worry about them. My mom taught me how to get blood stains out of _everything."_ She could feel Levi's smile on her hand and her heart almost melted, "We'll take care of it when you're all cleaned up. Okay?"

"Okay."

He lifted her chin to face him as he stood up, "No worrying. I mean it, these things happen."

Cath nodded.

"You know, a wise man once said: 'ob-la-di, ob-la-da,'" Levi leaned down to kiss her, "'Life goes on.'"

...

The next thing she knew Levi was trying to wake her up. For a moment she thought the whole thing was a dream, but when she came to her senses she realized that she was in the bathtub.

"You shouldn't fall asleep in the tub, it's dangerous," He had a little smile on, "Let's get you out of here."

Cath stood up and yawned, letting Levi wrap a towel around her like a little girl. Normally she would have been too proud to be treated so patronizingly, but she was too comfortable to argue. Besides, it didn't do anyone any harm to be babied every once and awhile.

"I'll get out of your way now. Your-" He paused, "-lady things are on the counter."

The contents of the bag made her blush. There were feminine hygiene products, but there was also a flannel pajama set. When she finished changing and stepped back into the bedroom Levi was sitting on the bed with his legs crossed surrounded by bags of _Hershey's Kisses_. Even the bedding was changed.

"Are you even real?" Cath smiled.

"C'mere." He pulled her to the bed, "Better?"

"Much better." She hugged him, "Thank you so much, Levi."

"You're welcome, Sweetheart."

Levi lifted the covers, letting the candy bags fall to the floor and beckoned for her to climb under them. They snuggled up as close as they could get and just laid there watching one another. Cath was happy. More than happy, really; she felt safe.

"Cather," Levi's two-weeks-overgrown beard tickled her, "I don't want you to go home tomorrow."

"I'm leaving on Sunday."

"It's technically Saturday."

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I don't want to go home either." She kissed his nose.

He dropped his voice, "Stay with me."

"Levi, you don't even know where _you're _staying."

"I was thinking about going to Lincoln early, actually."

She didn't say anything.

"Stay with me." He said again.

"I don't know, Levi." Cath frowned, "That's a lot to consider."

"It's not like I'm asking you to move in with me forever," Levi rationalized, "It'd be easier to get you moved into your dorm later."

"Levi..." She groaned.

"I'll take you home whenever you want," he kissed her, "We could even bring Baz."

Cath sighed.

"Cather, I don't want to be alone." Levi confessed, "I need you."

"Alright, I'll go with you." She agreed, "But I want to spend the week with my dad and sister. You should get your things together anyways."

"Thank you, Cather."

"I love you, silly boy."

"I love you, too."

They tried to stay up all talking, kissing, and snuggling, but they couldn't fight it off. Cath wasn't sure why they were trying so hard anyway. It wasn't like it was their last night, and even if it was, they were going to see each other again the next week. Levi fell asleep before her. As she laid there looking over his soft, sleepy features, she thought about "moving in" with him. They would be there before anyone else; alone; unsupervised. Her stomach filled with butterflies. She had thought about it before, but now she knew there was no avoiding it. Although, she wasn't sure that she wanted to avoid it anymore. When they moved in together _it was going to happen. _Cath was going to have sex with Levi.

_Bloody hell._

* * *

**_In case you skipped my beginning spiel, there won't be a new chapter until 10/5 _**


	11. Chapter 11: Time Isn't Wasted

_HELLLLLOOOOOOO! Long time no see? How was your I'll Be Your Levy vacation? Did you miss it too much? Well don't you worry, because I think there is going to be a lot of party Levi these next few chapters! And what's more fun than fiesta-Levi?_

_Anyways, I'm thinking my other project will be posted in December or January, so look forward to that because I promise, it's going to be a Fangirl-fanspolsion!_

_See you next time,_

_Cecilia_

* * *

Time Isn't Wasted When You're Getting Wasted  
(Asher Roth: I Love College)

"... It was a pretty crazy week, and now Levi is staying at John's until next week. Then we're moving into his house by the school."

Levi had left at three to meet up John and a couple other friends for dinner and beers. That left Cath in Omaha, sitting with her family around the table at dinner, breaking the news all by herself.

"We're?" Her dad raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I'm going to Lincoln early..." Cath blushed, "With Levi."

"Why?" He coughed into a napkin, "You're staying together?"

"Yeah, Levi needs me."

"He's 21, he doesn't need a teenage babysitter!" Wren chimed in.

Their dad had his face in his hands, "I'm not letting you do that."

"Why, it's-"

"Because you can't just go live with him, what if you were wrong and he's like... crazy." Wren was getting angry too.

"We've known each other for almost a year, we've been dating for about half that time. I know who Levi is, and he's not a closet murderer, _obviously_..." Cath stood up,

"You're being dumb, aren't you supposed to be on my side?"

"Cath, you're 19, I don't want you to get hurt. Moving in with someone is a big deal." Their dad sighed.

There was quiet for a moment.

"Dad, I'm still moving into the dorms in September. I'll come back home all the time, I just want to be there for him." Cath slumped back down into her chair, "He's been there for me whenever I needed him, I plan to do the same for him. I'm going, I have to."

"Fine... but we're having a sister meeting upstairs later." Wren nodded.

"Wren, she doesn't need _your_ permission..." Their dad spoke up again, "But if you really feel like that's what you need to do, Cather, then go for it, I guess. I'm not going to stop you, I just don't want to see you get used."

"Thank you." She smiled, relieved that they understood.

After dinner, the twins headed upstairs to their room to discuss in private what happened over the past two weeks, the parts that couldn't be shared with their dad. Wren was completely in awe over the Simon Snow books, but when Cath took out the little, red puff from a box, she completely lost it.

"Oh my God! Is that real?" She reached out to run her fingers through it's fur.

"Yeah, Levi's rabbit had babies and he picked this one out for me."

"It's so cute! What did you name it?"

"Well, his full name is Kanye Basilton Stewart, but we just call him Baz." Cath smiled, setting him on her sister's lap.

"That's so perfect. I love it!" Wren curled up around the little fluff, "Why Stewart?"

"That's Levi's last name."

"Oh, yeah, duh." She pretended to hit her forehead with her palm, "Can I keep him while you're in Lincoln?"

"Ha, no." Cath scoffed, "_But _did I tell you about Levi's friend John? You'd love him."

* * *

The next evening Cath could feel the tension bubbling up in her stomach. She hoped that if her stomach dissipated, she'd stop getting knots in it all the time. It didn't stop the fact that there was an unread email from _Nick Canter _in her inbox.

"Wren!" She called out.

"What?" Wren ran in from the bathroom, nails still wet with pink paint.

"Look at this."

"Seriously, Cath? Your fic couldn't wait twenty minutes?" She grumbled, leaning over the screen, "Oh!"

"Yeah..."

"What does it say?"

"I haven't read it yet," Cath bit her lip and opened the message.

_Cath,_

_Hey, I know we left on bad terms, but I wish we hadn't. It was really wrong of me to have tried to steal your work, I see that now and if you would have me, I'd like to take you out to lunch and apologize in person. You live in Omaha, right?_

_I hope to hear back from you,_

_Nick Canter_

"God, cry me a river..." Wren rolled her eyes, "Who does he think he is?"

"What should I say?" Cath frowned.

"Just blow him off, he's an asshole, he doesn't get a second chance."

"That's what I thought about Levi, though."

"Yeah, but you were crazy-stupid in like with Levi," Wren argued, "Besides, you _have_ Levi now. You don't need him in your life."

"Wren, he wants to apologize, not elope," Cath said.

They thought for a second.

"We could go all _Parent Trap _and I'll go for you."

Cath laughed, "That's alright. I think I can handle him myself."

"Whatever."

_Hey Nick,_

_I'm willing to hear you out, but I'm leaving town next week. Maybe Wednesday?_

_See you soon? _

_Cath_

"Sound good?" Cath asked, handing her laptop to Wren.

"There are far few curses cast on it, but it'll do." She snorted.

As the email was sent, she could almost feel the knots in her stomach get even tighter.

"I hope Levi doesn't get jealous." Cath frowned.

Wren just shrugged and left the room.

She wondered for a moment how awkward the meeting would be, then decided to call Levi to let him know what was going. Something gave her an idea that he'd get a little butthurt if she didn't let him know ahead of time.

The phone rang for a long time before there was an answer.

Laughter and music burst through the speaker.

"Uhm, Levi?" She said in a confused mumbled.

"HEY SWEETHEART!" Levi boomed, she could picture his words coming out in big, red, all-caps letters. Although, he wasn't yelling; it was more of an excited, happy-that-everything-exists voice, "WHAT'S UP?"

"Why are you talking like that?" Cath felt like she was whispering in comparison.

"HM? OH..." She could hear him take a drink and step into another room, "SOrry about that. What's up, sweetie?"

"I was just calling to let you know that, uhm, well, Nick emailed me."

"The story-stealer guy?" He took another drink.

"Yeah." She braced herself, "We're going to get lunch or something."

Levi grunted into whatever he was drinking and dribbling liquid noises spilled through the phone.

"You're going on a date with him?"

"NO!-" Cath was blushing "-Well, I mean kind of, he said he wanted to apologize over lunch,"

"When? Do you want me to go with you? I can be out there in the morning," He was talking too fast like he was getting flustered, "I can be out there tonight if you want, I just don't think I should be driving, this is like my fourth beer."

"No, no I'm fine, thank you. I just wanted to let you know, so I wasn't doing it behind your back." She smiled a little, "I'm really glad you're not drinking and driving, though."

"You're such a good girl. What a nice thing to do. You're so cute." He sounded really relaxed again, "I love you so much! I wish you were here."

"Levi, are you okay, darling?" Cath giggled at the one track mind Levi.

Then quiet.

"Did you just call me 'darling?'" He was grinning.

"Oh _God," _she rolled her eyes.

"You did! Oh my God, I love you so much. I wish I could just give you a big bear hug and tell you how much I love you!"

"Who are you with right now?" Her ears were burning up.

"John, Paul, Jude-"

"And Ringo?" Cath raised an eyebrow.

"No, David." He sounded genuinely confused.

"Well, if they're half as drunk as you don't get in the car with them, okay?"

"We won't go anywhere, we're at Paul's house. I'll probably just crash somewhere in his living room."

"Okay, good. I'll call you and let you know what's going on tomorrow, alright?"

"Nooooo, stay here." He groaned, "I miss you."

"I can't, I'm going to the movies with Wren soon."

Levi sighed, "Okay, I'll go back inside then."

"Goodnight, I love you."

"I love you too. You're so pretty, I love you so much. You're the prettiest girl in the whole wide world."

"I'm going to hang up now."

"Okay."

_Beep_

"Who was that?" Wren asked, sitting on the bed.

"My drunk as a skunk boyfriend." Cath laughed.

"Cool," she shrugged, "So, what movie should we go see?"

"Let's go see that Keira Knightley and Steve Carell movie."

"Alright, I think there's a 10:15 showing."

"Okay."


	12. Chapter 12: With A Little Bit More

_Hello,_

_Okay so I know, I definitely just bailed out on last weeks post, but in my defense, I had a concert last week AND I went out of town to visit my best friend. Also, it's been really hard to write lately because, dum-da-da-DAAAAAAA; my laptop, Geoffrey, is broken. He's in desperate need of some TLC._

_I'm sorry I skimped out on you last week, but don't you worry, _I'll Be Your Levy_ isn't going anywhere! :)_

_Next time I'll try to give you a heads up if I'm going AWOL,_

_Cecilia_

* * *

With A Little Bit More Character For Show

(Panic! At The Disco: Folkin' Around)

Nick was already at the cafe when Cath arrived. He was wearing a mustard-colored scarf, a denim _Carhartt _shirt, burgundy chinos and brown, suede shoes. For a brief moment she remembered why she had liked him before. There was just something so old timey and handsome about him as he stood up to give her a quick hug that made her feel like she was full of bubbles. That is until a pang of embarrassment and anger hit her and made her insides churn. As far as she was concerned, he was a jerk and she already had the best boyfriend in the world. She began to regret agreeing to see him.

"Hello, Cath," Nick smiled.

"Hey," Cath said.

"How have you been?" He asked as they took a seat at a table with a daisy in an empty bottle of Patron as a centerpiece.

She chewed her lip before responding, "Fine. You?"

"I've been... Mostly well."

"Mostly?" Cath raised an eyebrow, more curious about the word choice than the implication.

"Well, I've been thinking about what happened between us a lot and I just feel so terrible about it. It was a really shitty thing for me to do and I realize that now. I mean, I-I'm feeling genuinely guilty." He sighed, "I shouldn't have used you."

They broke eye contact when the barista set their drinks in front of them.

Nick reached over to touch her hand, "I heard one of your pieces got accepted into _The Prairie Schooner. _It's no surprise though, you're really an amazing writer, Cath."

"Why are you doing this?" Cath snapped, pulling her hand away like his was a giant spider. She hadn't expected to be _so_ frustrated with him.

"I told you: I wanted to apologize."

"Then why didn't you just send me an email apology? Or, like, write a letter? Or send a pigeon?" She hissed.

He chuckled. _Stupid Nick. He chuckles. I hate 'chuckle.'_

"Cath, it means so much more apologizing in person." Nick said, "Please look at me, Cath. I'm sorry."

Cath took a drink of her tea and raised her eyes to his navy blue eyes. _Stupid Nick, correctly using the magic word..._

"Thank you," She mumbled, "For apologizing."

"Thank you for letting me." He gave a weak smile.

They made small talk while they waited for their drinks to cool. She knew that the two of them would probably never be able to be close friends or anything, but she thought he was tolerable again. It gave her a sense of peace and closure, like she had a little more control in her life.

"So, Cath." Nick began.

"Yes?"

"I was thinking-" He took her hand again- "Maybe we could, start getting together and writing again. It would really be a collaboration this time."

"I don't think-"

"No, it could be great, now we have an understanding. You make me so much better, you're like my muse," He pressed his lips to her wrist and winked, "We could be partners."

"You know what I think?"

* * *

"You _what?" _Wren asked.

Cath was sitting on her bed with Baz on her lap, wearing her favorite pajamas and smiling.

"I poured my tea straight on his crotch." She giggled.

"Yes," Wren stood up on her own bed with her hands thrown into the air, "You are such a badass when you want to be."

"Well, he shouldn't have pulled that. I mean, what was he thinking? That if he acted all charming I'd fall right back into that trick? No way."

"I'm so proud of you. I hope you melted his dick off."

"It wasn't actually that hot anymore..."

"Still, it's the thought that counts. Metaphorical melting. Ego melting," Wren grinned. "So, what do you think of a Simon Snow marathon since your day is officially free? I think little Baz needs to meet his real father."

"Don't you have work tonight?" Cath asked.

Wren had recently gotten a job at an Italian restaurant and since she was new, she worked a lot of late night shifts.

"No, I called in and told them I couldn't work today," she shrugged.

"Why?"

"Duh, I had to have the time off in case your 'apology' date went sour and you needed me."

It was moments like that that made Cath really appreciate her sister. They would always have each other's backs and be there to give the greatest pep talk they could muster up whenever they needed one. Nothing could ever come between them anymore, because at the end of the day, they weren't just sisters; they were best friends.

Nothing besides work apparently, because two movies in Wren's boss called pleading with her to go in because they were so understaffed. Cath didn't mind though, it was the thought that counted. She watched the third movie with Baz before going downstairs to check on her dad, who had been busy trying to come up with a pitch for "Materni-cream" which was supposed to be ice cream that appealed to the cravings pregnant women had, but sounded like an advert for breast milk. He was pretty frustrated, but healthily, as anyone stuck with such an unappealing product would be, nothing for her to be concerned about.

"Hey, Cath," He said, not looking up from his laptop.

"Hey, dad. Do you know what you want for dinner tonight?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, honey. I actually have a business dinner tonight, I forgot to tell you, didn't I?"

"That's alright, I'll just make something for myself." She forced a smile, but it didn't matter because her dad's face was still engulfed in the dim light of his computer screen.

With a bowl of cereal in hand, Cath went back upstairs to her bedroom to continue her marathon on in her bed. Midway through the fourth film her _Skype _started chirping, informing her that she was getting a call from "JawnH5awyer." It took her a moment to realize that was supposed to read "John H. Sawyer" and accepted the call.

"Look! It's Cather, I knew that had to be her." Levi smiled at John, who was sitting next to him.

"Hey," Cath grinned, "How'd you get my Skype information?"

John waved, "We assumed you were the only Magicath without a number sequence behind it."

"Yeah, it was between that or CathAvery93," she said.

"I wanted John to meet Wren, is she in the room?"

"She's at work right now, she doesn't get off until 11:30."

"Oh, well how was your date with your new boyfriend?" Levi teased.

"Ha," she rolled her eyes, "It was okay for a minute, but Nick's still a total jerk."

"What happened?" John asked.

"He apologized and things were fine until he suggested that we start getting together to write again. I mean, I probably wouldn't have gotten so upset if he hadn't interrupted me. That was the last straw, actually no, I think when he kissed my wrist that was it. It was all over... so patronizing."

"He kissed you?" Levi frowned and dropped his eyebrows.

"My _wrist."_

"Why did he have your hand in the first place?"

"Levi, do you really want to talk about this in front of John?" Cath blushed.

Levi looked over at his friend and pushed him off-screen by his head. There was a _thump! _on the ground and their camera went shaky.

"What John?" He laughed, disappearing from her view with another crash to the floor. She assumed they were fighting.

John rose up again, "Want me to kick his ass- erhm, Nick's, not Levi's."

"Don't worry," Cath giggled, "I got it covered, I poured my drink on him and walked right out."

"You pulled a corny, chick-flick move?" Levi yelled from somewhere off-screen.

"Yes I did."

When John fell over a mess of blonde hair popped back up.

"I am so proud of you, sweetheart." He placed his hand over his heart in half-sarcastic admiration.

"Yeah, what a badass thing to do." Glasses askew, John reappeared, "You don't need no man telling you what to do, ain't nobody got time for that."

Levi just nodded.

"You guys are cute." Cath said.

They answered simultaneously.

"Thanks, that's just the way I was born-" Levi.

"Thanks, I know, I'm pretty fly for a farm guy-" John.

"Nice. Humble," she laughed.

"You're just jealous you're not as in sync with someone like we ar- just kidding you have a twin." John shook his head and his glasses finally fell into place.

Cath laughed again, "Well, how about I send her a telepathic message and tell her to get home as soon as possible and we'll call you back then?"

"Do you have to go?" Levi asked.

"I'm in the middle of a movie, but I'll call you guys back as soon as Wren gets here."

"Oh, okay." He smiled, "I miss you."

"I'll see you in a few days."

"It's the distance."

"I'll talk to you boys later." She sighed with a hint of a smile.

"Bye Cath!" John waved.

"I love you!" Levi chimed in.

"Goodbye, love you too."

* * *

_**A/N: Hey there reader. I'm not saying it's going to happen in the **_**next**_** chapter, but within the next few chapters Cath and Levi are going to make this M-rated fic, well, they're gonna do M-rated things. I'll give you a heads up in the description above when it does happen. I just didn't want you to jump into that chapter like 'Yeah, here's another really fluffy chapter! Oh wait. Nope, too many dicks on this dance floor." All I'm saying is, if you're not into it, just skip over it. I'm giving you the heads up now. But let's be realistic; this is a fanfiction site, this scene is probably what you've been waiting for since you started reading IBYL, amirite?**_


	13. TEMPORARY DELAY

Hello reader,

I'm sorry to say there won't be an update until my laptop is fixed. It's too hard to keep writing these chapters on my phone, plus the editing is so half assed when I use my phone.

Don't worry too much though. I'm getting my laptop fixed this week, so I'll be able to get some writing done finally.

I'll post as soon as I possibly can, I really am sorry. I know how lame it is when a story just disappears out of the blue, but we're not going anywhere.

If you have any questions or concerns or just want to be like "oh hey there, be my friend plz", feel free to contact me.

Thank you for your patience,

Cecilia


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